Originally published July 3 2005
Take your dog to work for less stress
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
If your dog followed you to school you had to take him back, but some businesses were allowing dogs at work in support of Pet Sitters International's "Bring Your Dog to Work Day" last Friday, because dogs in the workplace have been shown to reduce stress, improve productivity and act as a great recruitment incentive, the Boston Globe reports.
While most businesses don't allow dogs, Pet Sitters International, which promotes the annual ''Take Your Dog to Work Day," says that's slowly changing.
''We've seen steady growth in participation," says John Long, a member of the Pet Sitters organization.
''Having dogs in the workplace has been shown to reduce stress and improve employee morale.
Long says having dogs in the workplace goes smoothly when the company sets guidelines that everyone agrees on in advance and that address the potential problems.
Small technology, advertising, or design companies seem to have more dog-friendly workplaces, says Long, as do real estate agencies.
''You only want to bring in pets that are, first and foremost, clean, well-groomed, and socialized.
No dogs with an aggressive nature, shy, or nervous," he says.
Don Linville, a partner in the Sacramento, Calif., Web-development firm CR deZign, runs a dog-friendly office.
He left his tie behind on Wall Street and likes working in a relaxed, small-business environment.
His 10-month-old retriever, Henry, has grown up in the office and is there most days when clients aren't.
''When I looked for a dog, I specifically looked for mellow, for a breed that would work best around people," he says, ''and I made sure everyone who works here was OK with a dog."
Because Henry was a puppy when Linville joined the firm, cleanup supplies and a crate were crucial.
''He prefers the mailman over the UPS guy, but he likes the FedEx guy best of all," says Linville, who notes that the retriever's also a good center fielder in the occasional office Wiffle ball games.
For Linville, the advantage of having Henry in the office is that it makes working long hours more bearable.
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