Today was another first for me. I overheard someone discussing an event called the Puppy Pawlooza. Usually when I her the term “palooza” mentioned it’s in reference to music, dancing, festivals, drinking, etc. Well, that wasn’t the case today.
Today, they were talking about an event on Drexel University’s campus where certified therapy dogs spent their day playing with students. That’s right, Drexel brings these dogs to campus each year to help students find relaxation before finals hit – after all research shows that interaction with pets decreases the level of cortisol, a stress hormone, in people and increases endorphins. The event is put on by a multitude of Drexel collaborators including Campus Activities Board, the LeBow College of Business, the Drexel Recreation Center, Active Minds at Drexel University and Drexel Peer Counseling Helpline.
Just this year the University decided to add a student entrance and exit survey – designed by Kevin G Montgomery, MBA, Director of College Operations in the LeBow College of Business and Wilfred Agbenyikey, ScD, MPH, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the School of Public Health – to gauge the stress levels of students before and after playing with the dogs. Students were asked to grade and rank their levels of stress and identify stresses in their life.
Drexel has established a longstanding dedication to bringing therapy dogs to campus for out-of-the-box coping method. In fact, this fall they became the first university in the country whose recreation center hosts an on-site therapy dog, named Jersey, year-round. They were also the first college in the Greater Philadelphia area to retain a therapy dog on campus.
Montgomery and Agbenyikey are working on an analysis of the surveys. Hopefully, we’ll hear what the results unveiled soon.
To watch a video from last year’s Puppy Pawlooza, click here.
Original story by Alissa Falcone at Drexel University.
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