By Crystal Cantu/reporter
NW students mentally prepared for midterms in the Walsh library by de-stressing along with the help of a four-legged special guest.
Schatzie, a 15-year-old cockapoodle, made her grand entrance with 40 students awaiting her arrival. A cockapoodle is a small dog and is a mix between a Cocker Spaniel and a poodle.
“I love dogs, and I am dealing with a lot of stress due to midterms,” NW student Leslie Gonzalez said.
Schatzie walked toward the large group of students and was ready for her entrance, complete with all the snuggles and cuddles. Students could sit down to pet and interact with her.
“This time of the year, we get asked to do a lot of work,” said Susan Voise, Schatzie’s owner.
Voise, who is also a psychologist, talked about how she knew early on that Schatzie was going to be a therapy dog.
“She was a very smart puppy,” Voise said.
Because of Schatzie’s age, she is considered to be “semi-retired” and is only allowed to work for one hour a day.
NW student Hope Luper attended a “De-Stress with Dogs” event last semester.
“I really like seeing dogs, and I feel that people dealing with stress can benefit from this kind of therapy,” Luper said.
All dogs go through extensive amounts of training to become registered therapy dogs. Training includes the dog’s obedience and temperament.
“More places need to accept our dogs,” Gonzalez said. “I don’t see what the big deal is with having your dog out with you when people train them and they’re well behaved.”
