Yes! You Can Find Dogs at College!

Are you attached to your dog?  Think that the scariest part of moving away is not having contact with a furry friend?  You are not alone.

Knox College offers regular "pet therapy" sessions with their resident therapy dog, Olive Yu (I love you, too).  At Knox, you can schedule 15 minute sessions to hang with Olive and help satisfy your "puppy time" needs.  

This is a real movement on college campuses.  Deaf Dogs Rock reports therapy dogs on campus at Yale Law, UCONN, Occidental College, Fordham University, Rochester Institute of Technology, Tufts University, UC Riverside, Caldwell College, Oberlin College, and Mercy College.  Oklahoma State and Kent State programs are featured on NBC News' report entitled "Campus Therapy Dogs Offer a Helping Paw to Stressed Students."  Forbes features Caldwell College in their article declaring "Pet Therapy is a Nearly Cost-Free Anxiety Reducer On College Campuses."

If you love spending time with dogs, check out whether your college offers pet therapy.  Some colleges set it up as a campus even that welcomes walk-ins, other set up regularly-scheduled pet gatherings, while other set it up as a appointment through health or counseling services.  If your college does not offer it, ask if you can set it up.  Most colleges encourage students to set up clubs that meet their needs, and you can work with your campus to figure out a way to set it up, perhaps by contacting therapy dog certification programs to find volunteer dogs and their handlers.

I love using my dogs as part of my practice.  Students relax and tell me more when they are half-talking to my dogs, which lets us really explore the things that interest each student in a really safe environment.  I hope you find your way to the level of "doggy exposure" that is right for you at college.

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