(Radio Iowa) – University of Northern Iowa football fans are delighting in watching a new four-legged member of the Panther Marching Band take the field at halftime this season. Winnie, a golden retriever, is the service dog for sophomore student Gabi Riessen, who has a chronic condition called POTS, or postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome.

“My heart rate fluctuates more than other people,” Riessen says. “I can get dizzy just standing, and so Winnie will warn me before I pass out, or if my heart rate’s too high, so I can sit down.” Riessen transferred to the Cedar Falls campus when her old school didn’t allow her to join activities because she would need her service dog with her. U-N-I marching band director Justin Mertz says Riessen and Winnie are now local celebrities.

“When we first spoke on the phone, the plan was, you know, she was not really gonna really do any marching,” Mertz says, “But then we met her, we met Winnie, and we saw what they would both be capable of, and we agreed to give it a try. And the next thing, you know, there’s a dog on the field.”

Riessen plays cymbals and mallet percussion in the band’s stationary frontline ensemble. Winnie accompanies her human, dressed in full gear and attached to her by a leash around Riessen’s waist. You can watch Riessen and Winnie perform next at U-N-I’s Homecoming football game against Missouri State on October 26th.