Pet therapy: Dollar, Yen & Euro keep SIMC hostel students ‘animated’

At the Vimannagar campus, Yen and Euro were welcomed with garlands by the students.

Symbiosis introduces pets in all its hostels to make students feel less home sick. Express photo.

Ever since Dollar and Pound — two labrador puppies — have entered the premises of the hostel of Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication (SIMC) in Lavale, the students say the mood at the hostel has turned quite animated.

“There’s a lot of good energy flowing, the atmosphere has become chirpy and positive. Unlike earlier, when everyone stuck to their work, studies and assignments or their group of friends, now we are bumping into each other more often when we are playing with the puppies, cuddling them and pampering them,” said Sourabh Dubey, one of the students, whose parents are settled in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh. Likewise, the new entrants at the SIMC, Vimannagar campus are Yen and Euro, another pair of labrador puppies. All this thanks to the newly-introduced Pet Therapy initiative by SIMC, which is aimed to make students feel more at home.

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Vidya Yeravdekar, director, Symbiosis International University, said, “I have two labs at home and I know how they can positively boost one’s well-being by showering love and warmth. After a tiring day, when one reaches home, one feels wanted and loved. They are great stressbusters. I know that though students walk into the campus with a lot of dreams, somewhere they do miss their family and feel homesick. Sometimes, due to loneliness and fear of being in a new city, they also get into addiction. Thus, I decided to try pet therapy as an experiment.”

Yeravdekar said when the announcement of the initiative was made nearly two weeks ago at an event, the students were ecstatic, so much so that some of them ran to hug her. At the Vimannagar campus, Yen and Euro were welcomed with garlands by the students.

Snigdha Dixit, a student, said, “I am an animal lover and have a pet dog – a labrador – at my home in Bhopal, where my parents stay. Having a pet around definitely makes a lot of difference. Now, I feel at home. Besides, the bonding between the students have also increased from the time the dogs have joined us. Whenever we come to them, we find someone or the other with them .”

“Fortunately, the puppies have been accepted well by the students. Other than the conventional academic learning, this is an experience that the students will take back with them and cherish all their lives. I feel that all universities should adopt pet therapy,” she said.

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