Healthy Carolina brings therapy dogs to de-stress students
Students were greeted by barks and wagging tails Wednesday evening in the Columbia Hall lobby, where Healthy Carolina brought therapy dogs from Prescription Paws to help alleviate stress.
Finian, a 5-year-old papillon, and Gideon, a 3-year-old Shetland sheepdog gave students a break from studying, accompanied by their owners, Prescription Paws members Teoti Anderson and Phyllis Beasley.
“We have been interested in doing this for some time, and USC invited us to come out,” Anderson said. “We heard about it happening at other universities, so we thought it would be great to do it here.”
Alissa Thebarge, coordinator for Healthy Carolina, said the program booked the Prescription paws event after a study by the National College Health Assessment listed stress, anxiety and sleep as the top three major health-related academic impediments for students.
Columbia Hall is home to the Living and Learning Community for Healthy Carolina, a group of wellness-focused students, which is why the residence hall was chosen for the event.
For those who missed the dogs on Wednesday, don’t let it stress you out. They’ll be back at USC during midterms and finals, Thebarge said.