Final Exams & The Resident Sayre Therapy Dog

I’ve often joked that Dash is “The Resident Sayre Therapy Dog”… but the truth is, it is only a tiny bit joke, and it is mostly 100% serious.

This puppy is not a trained or certified Therapy Dog. But I can’t imagine better training than full immersion socialization — he’s been in pseudo-training from the minute we brought him home as a baby pup — Dash knows no other life than living on campus, in the dorm, with students. He knows their rhythms, their moods, their coming-and-going. He knows which ones want to run around outside and play with him, which ones have treats in their apartments for him, and which ones just want to sit on the floor and cuddle with him. And, honest-to-God, I’m pretty sure he knows when it is Final Exam Period.

Dash has been working hard this week — providing therapy/emotional-support/stress-reduction for the students he knows and loves. The 200 or-so Sayre-residents-and-their-friends/boyfriends/girlfriends/study-partners often seek him out for comfort. He spends much of his day being petted by students who come to him shaky and stressed out, and leave a little bit less so.

I’ve watched this week as students come looking for him. I’ve watched as students text their roommates to let them know “Dash is outside!” I’ve watched students pull out their cell phones and call their friends, saying, “Hurry! Come quick! Dash is here!” One student came to me this week, to tell me that she’s concerned about her roommate — “She’s so stressed out, I’m really worried about her, do you think she could spend some time with Dash today?”

Dash is a good puppy. He soaks it all up (I don’t know who’s benefiting more: Dash or the students), and he takes it in stride. He knows no other life. And he’s very good at what he does. Every dorm should have a Dash.

therapy dog “A therapy dog is a dog trained to provide affection and comfort to people in hospitals, retirement homes, nursing homes, schools, hospices, disaster areas, and to people with learning difficulties.” “Research indicates that interaction with therapy dogs can temporarily affect the release of various neurotransmitters in the brain; levels of oxytocin (linked with bonding) and dopamine (involved in the reward-motivation system) are increased, while cortisol levels (an immunosuppressant associated with stress) are decreased.” “Colleges and universities in the United States bring therapy dogs to campus to help students de-stress. These campus events are often referred to as ‘Therapy Fluffies,’ a term coined by Torrey Trust, the original founder of the UC San Diego therapy dog de-stress event.”