Inside a University of Central Florida chemistry laboratory, a dog named Canela sits quietly on a mat wearing safety goggles and protective booties. Canela is a trained service dog who accompanies Cecilia Hernandez, a UCF chemistry Ph.D. student, into the lab and is trained to detect health emergencies affecting her handler.
As reported by FOX 35 Orlando, Canela accompanies Hernandez to the UCF chemistry lab and wears protective equipment that includes goggles and booties. The report presents the arrangement as an unusual example of a service dog working in a chemistry setting, where the animal must remain near Hernandez while avoiding laboratory hazards.
Preparing Canela for the laboratory required repeated training sessions, according to Upworthy. The training covered both tolerance of personal protective equipment and the ability to perform medical alerts while wearing it and remaining on a designated mat.
A Health Crisis Led Her to Canela
Hernandez has described the health circumstances that led her to rely on a service dog. The same Upworthy account says she underwent emergency surgery and faced significant health difficulties after beginning college in 2021, before Canela became part of how she managed her disability.
That relationship continued through Hernandez's undergraduate studies. She studied chemistry at Rollins College and graduated cum laude with Canela beside her. Upworthy reports that Canela was also recognized during the commencement ceremony with a special service badge.
Balancing Research, Teaching, and Advocacy
Hernandez has continued building her academic résumé at UCF. In a LinkedIn post, she wrote, “I can't believe six months have passed since I began my Ph.D. at the University of Central Florida,” and said she taught four General Chemistry discussion courses serving more than 1,200 students in one semester as a graduate teaching assistant. She also reported presenting research at the UCF STEMS 2025 conference and the SACNAS NDiSTEM2025 conference. Her post concluded with the message, “with Canela by your side, remember anything is possible.”
Hernandez has said her hope is to advocate for greater representation and accessibility in STEM, according to Upworthy. The National Science Teaching Association has separately noted that institutions may need to plan for hazards such as spilled chemicals, broken glass, vapors, loud noise and slippery surfaces when assistance animals enter laboratories. Its discussion describes protective measures including booties, a coat and indirectly vented chemical-splash goggles; those general recommendations do not by themselves establish UCF's specific protocol.
What accessibility guidance says
UCF's Laboratory Safety Manual identifies the university's Environmental Health and Safety department as the authority responsible for implementing campus health and safety regulations, while laboratory-specific duties remain with the relevant personnel, according to UCF Environmental Health and Safety. The manual establishes that institutional safety framework, but the available material does not detail a universal procedure for service animals in every chemistry or research laboratory. The participation gap extends beyond individual cases. According to the National Science Foundation, recent estimates place people with disabilities at 19% of postsecondary students, 8% of graduate students and 4% of American faculty. The agency's STEM Access for Persons with Disabilities initiative lists accommodations for service animals in research laboratories and other educational environments as one possible form of accessibility support.
A Shot at National Recognition
Canela's work has also earned her a place among this year's Hero Dog Award contenders. FOX 35 Orlando reports that she is a semifinalist in the 2026 American Humane Hero Dog Awards. According to American Humane, 25 semifinalists are selected for awards covering five categories, including service and guide dogs, therapy dogs, military dogs, and law enforcement and first responder dogs. Public voting narrows the field to five finalists before judges select category winners and an overall winner.
Public voting for the 2026 awards runs from August 10 through Thursday, September 18, according to American Humane. That places Canela's semifinalist bid at its final stretch as Hernandez's account draws wider attention. In the lab, Canela's role remains practical: staying with her handler and alerting to a potential health emergency.
