Pups and the City

It’s well known that animals have a calming effect on humans. Dogs are our go-to therapy pet of choice.

Having pets at home doesn’t just provide companionship, they have a physiological effect on their owners too. Research shows that simply spending time stroking your dog, walking it and cuddling it can all reduce anxiety, relieve feelings of isolation, lower blood pressure and alleviate symptoms of depression.

If a dog can do all that at home, imagine what they can achieve in your workplace…

While most companies didn’t allow you to bring your pup into the office with you prior to the pandemic, following lockdown they may need to be more flexible in future.

Why?

Because research shows that the UK faces a puppy shortage due to the number of people buying new puppies during lockdown. In fact, there was a 120% increase in the search query ‘buy a puppy’ during the first month of the pandemic.

Puppy prices are soaring and with all this time at home, it probably seems like the perfect time to train them. So, in order to keep yourself sane, get your pup trained properly, by using an accredited breeder:

Big Hearted Breeders, Dog Breeder

Dog-friendly London

If you’re not back at work yet and looking for things to do with your new best friend, there are so many places that you’re allowed to take dogs in London (that you may not think of as being pet-friendly).

There are the obvious ones like London’s parks - why not get some exercise on one of their many dog agility trails? Then there are the more surprising upmarket locations, for example: take some time out at the Rosewood Hotel (where your pooch is treated probably even better than you are). Or hit up Liberty of London, the eclectic emporium that allows shoppers to bring in their (small, well-behaved) pups.

Dogs at work

But what will happen to all these new furry companions when their owners return to work? With all the new dogs in London, owners will have to seriously think about what their hairy friends are going to do all day.

You could pay to have someone else look after your dog, walk it for you, play with it, and reap all the rewards, or you could see if your fur baby could hack it as a city dog and bring them into the office with you.

Maybe you could persuade your boss to introduce a new initiative - a ‘bring your dog to work’ day. If you’re still facing resistance, you may want to suggest these solid reasons:

1. There could be an increase in abandoned dogs

There’s a very real chance that ‘lockdown puppies’ will be abandoned when people go back to work. Looking after a dog is a full-time commitment - becoming a puppy parent is not something you should enter lightly.

Rescue centres like Battersea Dogs Home are already struggling with the financial cost of keeping their centres open during lockdown. With fundraising events cancelled and staff furloughed, the canine residents still need to be looked after and fed.

If rescue centres like these are going to be inundated with Lockdown Dogs when people return to work, they’re going to be unable to cope, facing closure. And if these centres don’t exist to rescue dogs in London, the alternative for unwanted dogs is unthinkable.

2. Office dogs reduce employee’s stress levels

There’s a reason dogs make such great therapy animals, helping to alleviate their human stress. And there can be plenty of stress in the workplace.

Not only do dogs lower stress levels, but they also improve employee job satisfaction (a study by CV-Library revealed that Brits cite job satisfaction as more important than salary).

3. Dogs improve workplace productivity

What happens when people are happier in their work? Their productivity goes up (and their absence goes down).

You might think having dogs in the workplace would distract people from their work, and while this may be true in part, the benefit of their presence far outweighs any negatives.

4. An office dog increases the retention rate

Having a dog in the office elevates everyone’s mood, bringing a more positive outlook to the workplace as a whole and encouraging employees to communicate better with one another (dogs provide a common interest between people).

And when employees are happy in their work and friendly toward their colleagues, employee retention rates will increase.

5. Employees feel valued

When employers give permission for employees to bring their pups into the office, it gives everyone who works there a sense of being cared about, of being valued.

We all have a life outside of the office and allowing employees to bring their pets into work with them demonstrates that you understand and acknowledge that employees have outside priorities, besides work, and that you value them as individuals, not just a number on your payroll.

Allowing staff to bring their dog to work sends the clear message - ‘we know you value your pet, and we value you’.