Therapy animals come to the rescue during finals week

Finals can be stressful.

So stressful, in fact, that according to the 2015 National College Health Assessment, 30 percent of students reported stress had negatively affected their academic performance within the past year. Over 85 percent of students felt overwhelmed by their many responsibilities at some point within the past year.

This month, the Merrill-Cazier Library provided just the fix by inviting therapy dogs and cats to the library.

Many students gave pats and chin scratches to the snuggly, four-legged furballs that showed up to uplift their spirits. The library also provided pizza, cookies, coloring and played a few episodes of The Office.

The first dog to arrive to the many waiting students was Sasha, a 5-year-old lab mix. She has been certified as a therapy dog since she was two years old.

Sue Crowley, a faculty member of the psychology department, adopted Sasha through an ad and one of her students was interested in getting Sasha certified as a therapy animal.

“Sasha loves to play frisbee and has a good hang time,” Crowley said. “But we don’t play with balls because she doesn’t like to give them back.”

In the next room over was Star and Sampson, two golden retrievers with their owners John and Barbara Abbott.

Kael Mahnken

On Tuesday students had the chance to go to the library, grab some popcorn, make stress balls, and hang out with a therapy dog.

The Abbotts have been rescuing animals since they’ve been married, for 43 years. They register their therapy animals through Intermountain Therapy Animals, a non-profit organization that specializes in certifying therapy animals.

“(Star) is independent, but loves to go on therapy jobs,” Barbara Abbott said.

Barbara found Star through an ad and rescued her from an abusive home.

Star is a 8-year-old golden retriever mix who has came a long way since becoming certified.

Barbara Abbott said Star used to attack other dogs when they would go on hikes and her husband would have to hold her back.

Kael Mahnken

On Tuesday students had the chance to go to the library, grab some popcorn, make stress balls, and hang out with a therapy dog.

As Star lay on her stomach with her eyes closed in relaxation as she let students pet her and pull on her ears, she seemed like an unlikely attacker.

Star’s favorite time of the year is winter. She loves the snow and likes to make snow angels.

“(Sampson) loves to love, he never leaves my side,” Barbara Abbott said. “He is 150 percent trustworthy with other people and dogs.”

Barbara Abbott heard about Sampson from her previous student’s parent, who said he needed a new home.

Sampson is a 7-year-old golden retriever mix (with no relation to Star), who loves to go on hikes and chase animals.

Both Star and Sampson love kids. They even help them learn how to read, as Star and Sampson are a part of the R.E.A.D. (Reading Education Assistance Dogs) program through Intermountain Therapy Animals.

Children read books to Star and Sampson, which helps the children improve their literacy skills.

Star and Sampson visit the Newton Library, Smithfield Library, Merrill-Cazier Library and the Bear River Charter Library regularly.

“It builds their self-confidence,” Barbara Abbott said.

The last visitor that showed up was Mr. Happy, a tabby point siamese cat.

Caleb Barclay

Mr. Happy and his owner Dee Dostaler met at PetSmart eight years ago.

Dostaler knew he was a happy cat when he picked him up to hold him and he had a big smile on his face.

Mr. Happy was indeed happy, smiling and purring as students gave him chin scratches and noggin pets.

Mr. Happy can’t survive the day without his morning Meow Mix meat treat and loves spending his free time playing with his red toy mouse.

Visiting with the therapy animals has real benefits. Scientific studies show that canine interaction increases a human’s level of oxytocin, a hormone that reduces anxiety and blood pressure. Petting a dog or caring for a pet helps people become less frightened, more secure and diverts their attention away from their own fears or anxieties.

Studies also show excessive stress, like the kind students may experience during finals, impairs memory. An activity that relieves that stress, even for a moment, improves a student’s ability to retain what they are trying to learn.

The next time you try to convince your roommates to let you adopt a dog to keep at the apartment, whip out these statistics and give them time to reconsider. They’ll come around.

— cawolf9290@gmail.com
@warewolf74