Dr. Paul Weiss brings therapy dog, Brooke, to his practice to help relax pedo patients [PHOTO]

A photo of a dentist and a dog sitting on a patient's lap that was posted two days ago on the social news site Reddit and has since sparked viral attention on the Web has us wondering if this is the start of a new trend among dentists and younger patients.

Redditor "jmb012345" posted the picture with a caption that reads, "This dentist brings his dog in as a way to calm the nerves of children who may be nervous. So great."

The dentist in the photo, a pediatric dentist from Williamsburg, NY Dr. Paul Weiss, told Buffalo Business First earlier this year that Brooke gets a bath before each visit, and the office is cleaned thoroughly when she leaves.

The concept appears to have received mixed reactions among the crowd.

"I want to go to this amazing dentist that let's you have a dog in your lap," wrote one Redditor who goes by "lavacat." "Where is this guy?"

Several Redditors expressed their doubts about therapy dogs playing a role in helping children relax during a visit to the dentist based on assumptions that a lot of kids fear dogs, but Weiss said that Brooke is only called upon occasionally and is always accompanied by a human staff member.

DPR.com recently posted an article on how to manage those younger patients who have the potential to become problematic. We failed to mention that bringing in a dog isn't out of the question.