Tomorrow is Take Your Dog to Work Day (#TYDTWD) and this post is dedicated to our furry friends who have to stay home the other 251 working days of the year! Now most organizations have a “no pet policy” in place and I am sure there are many reasons for that – people with allergies, people who are afraid of dogs. Other issues like dogs can be noisy and some may not be able to play nice with the other visiting canines. There is also the distraction factor – have you seen what happens to a meeting of people if you bring a puppy in to the room? And let’s not forget what occurs if they don’t get outside frequent enough or if they just want to claim the filing cabinet for themselves. There is a long list of reasons why dogs should stay at home.
And Now for the Positives!
In 2012 the Virginia Commonwealth University found that employees who brought their dogs to work experienced lower stress levels throughout the workday, had a more positive perception of their employer and also higher levels of satisfaction. And those aren’t the only benefits summarized by John McDermott at Inc.
Office dogs bring people together, create a sense of community, and even improve office-wide communications and collaboration.
Having pets in the office brought people together who might not have even known each other’s names. I know from walking my two dogs down the street that people see them, let their guard down, smile, some even stop to talk with me and pet them. This too happens in the work place. It’s hard to get agitated with a coworker when their labradoodle Finnegan is leaning against you begging to get a head rub!
The office dogs bring people together, create a sense of community, and even improve office-wide communications and collaboration. The team at Platform302, a co-working space for young companies in Hamilton, ON, says that Birkin, their company pooch makes their space more inviting and her energy spreads throughout the office!
Not convinced? Even the CDC has reports detailing the heath benefit of having pets around!
As someone who has two dogs, being able to bring my dogs to work with me would also be a bit of relief to my pocket book and my conscience. For long days away from home mine are taken with their puppy friends to an off-leash park on the lake. Of course this comes at a cost and also is only for an hour or two.
Where To Find A Pro-Pet Workplace
Now if you are currently in the market for a new job and want to bring Fido with you, you might want to check out 11 Pet Friendly Workplaces. And if you’re the person in charge and want to change some policies to make your workspace pet friendly check out Trupanion’s Getting Started Checklist.
We’d love to see your pictures from #TYDTWD so please attach them below in the comments section!