“Furry First Fridays” brings therapy dogs to Hayden

Building on the success of therapy dog visits at library study breaks during final exams, the Libraries are offering a new pilot program for students to spend quality stress-relief time with dogs.

“Furry First Fridays,” brings therapy dogs to Hayden Library on the first Fridayof each month of the fall term starting in October. A dog from Dog BONES, a non-profit therapy dog organization, and their human handler are available in a study room on the first floor of Hayden from 2 – 4 p.m. for students to drop by and visit.

“These [exam-week] visits with dogs have been so widely appreciated that we wanted to make them available more frequently — to provide students with the joy, love, companionship, and stress relief that comes from hanging out with our canine friends,” Duranceau says.

Ellen Duranceau, the Libraries’ Program Manager for Scholarly Publishing, Copyright, and Licensing is also a volunteer with Dog BONES, and coordinator of the pilot program.

Duranceau plans to participate in the program with her Golden Retriever Gracie, along with several other library staffers and their dogs. Furry First Fridays are offered October 3, November 7, and December 5, and are free and open to the MIT community.