Residents of Naismith Hall were greeted by three dogs from Loving Paws Animal Therapy in collaboration with KU’s Health Education Resource Office (HERO) for Pause 4 Pups on Wednesday night.
Pause 4 Pups was free to all. Over 30 students got a much-needed break from their studies to mingle with dogs: Mabel, Rylee and Harley Jane. Students stopped by to pet the furry friends, which provided some stress and anxiety relief to persevere to the end of the week.
Loving Paws Animal Therapy dog Rylee waits for pets from students at Pause 4 Pups on Nov. 20, 2024.
Cathy Hilliard is the owner of a nine-year-old beagle/lab mix named Harley Jane. Harley has been part of Loving Paws Animal Therapy for eight years. To become a certified therapy dog, she had to pass obedience training and an obstacle course.
“We did 12 weeks of obedience training, and then we did some research and found our therapy group here and did some training through them, “Hilliard said. “To do that, you have to do an obstacle course where they test the dogs on lots of different things to see how reactive they are. If they see other dogs, do they get aggressive? Do they get scared when wheelchairs or walkers are around? Do they jump up on people all the time? Because those are kind of no-nos.”
Students pet therapy dogs at the Pause 4 Pups event at Naismith Hall on Nov. 20, 2024.
According to her owner, Harley Jane’s favorite therapy sessions are at the Lawrence Public Library for Tail Wagging Readers. Kids read to her as she lies on their laps and receives pets. She also goes to work with Hilliard three days a week at a middle school special education class.
“There are a lot of times where we might have a student at school who’s upset about something and it’s really funny because she’ll walk into a classroom and find the kid that needs her the most, and then she’ll just lay there on the floor next to them,” Hilliard said.
When Harley Jane walks around the school and into different classrooms, the kids always get excited to pet her.
“I see them de-escalate from the moment they’re really upset about something when she comes in. Sometimes we’ll let them take her for a walk and sometimes they just sit on the floor and stroke her head, but you can just see it wash over them how much more relaxed they are and how much the endorphins are really pumping and making them feel a lot better when they’re really stressed,” Hilliard said.
Melissa Carter and her four-year-old Great Dane, Mabel, are new to Loving Paws Animal Therapy. Mabel basks in all the attention she gets. Even though she is a larger dog, she still brings joy to kids and other Lawrence residents.
After rescuing her from the woods a year ago, Carter realized Mabel was already trained to be a therapy dog. All she needed to do was pass the same exam as Harley and receive her certification.
“I like to sneak her into the school, I’m in special ed,” Carter said. “But the kids like her, she calms the kids. She is scared of noise and big crowds, but they like it when she comes to school.”
Since Mabel is a little larger, she will sometimes step on residents’ feet at nursing homes, but they don’t mind and love having her visit.
Once it hit 8 p.m., the crowd slimmed down and the dogs and their owners left. Students were able to return to their studies after petting the therapy dogs, a break from the stress of exams.
Students can keep up with KU’s events calendar to find out when the next Pause 4 Pups will be announced.
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