Why having a pet at your place of business is a great idea.

Having pets at work is a privilege that we as veterinary professionals often take for granted.  Many of us have hospital cats (in our case, often many more than one) that live at our place of work and are always there to happily greet us in the morning.  The Veterinary hospital is an ideal place for a resident pet, and many of us may bring our pets to work when and if needed.  However, the real question is, should your work place have a pet? 

I think that the answer is absolutely yes. 

Pets often promote social interaction between people.  If someone walks into a business with a resident pet it usually brings a positive response and seems to get people talking.  It allows for an automatic point of relation between the team member and the customer.   Introverts will find that small talk becomes easier with the common point of interest in the pet.  We no longer have to search for something to talk about because it is right there in front of our faces.  Automatic icebreaker! 

Pets are proven stress relievers and studies have shown that individuals that either brought their pets to work or interacted with a work pet, had lower stress hormones released throughout the day than people that had no pet interaction.  How can you be stressed when you see a soft furry face looking up at you?

Pet friendly workplaces tend to increase employee satisfaction and have higher moral than pet free businesses.   Company pets also help with employee retention; people may want to leave their job, but leaving the company pet may be emotionally more difficult.  They become more attached to their job when it includes the pet. We often have a litter of orphan kittens at our hospital to entertain us with their play during lunch breaks.

Pets can improved your image by softening the corporate boardroom experience.  If someone feels intimidated by your place of business, seeing the friendly face of a pet will often soften that experience.  Meetings will be less combative if the participants are petting the company cat.  Companies often use aquariums full of beautiful fish as an “ice breaker” in their lobby or boardroom and a furry pet can accomplish the same thing.

Pets at work could save the employee money and the company as well.  Employees that are able to bring their pet to work will often work more and longer hours and spend less money in day care and dog walking costs.   The fact that they do not have to rush home to walk or feed a pet allows them to stay longer at work and get more things accomplished.

Is there a downside to company pets?  Yes there can be.  Not all businesses are suitable for pet ownership.  Businesses that serve and prepare food and certain health care facilities may not be appropriate for pets.  Also, customers that fear pets or have pet allergies may not be particularly thrilled to see a pet at your place of business.  It must also be considered that pets can cause damage to carpet or furniture and may also endanger your employees or customers if they are not properly trained or become afraid and act out.

In most cases a well trained and socialized pet will bring rewards that surpass the effort, time and money that it takes to make them a part of your work place.  Try to build some logical company rules around pets in the workplace, talk to your insurance company about liability issues, then get a pet and see how it goes.  It will surely make your workplace more interesting and fun.

Dr. Julie Cappel