If you’re like me and almost every other college student, you know that seeing a dog on campus is one of the biggest day-makers you can have. There’s never a day that I don’t want to see a dog and, unfortunately, living on campus makes loving on man’s best friend a little less common than I’d like it to be. So, here are five reasons dogs are essential to a college student’s success.
1. Dogs love you unconditionally
If you have a dog at home, you know that heartwarming feeling of appreciation you get when you walk in your house, and your dog’s tail is just wagging and wagging, and he’s standing on his back paws in excitement. Being greeted by this every time you walk in the house- whether you were gone for two minutes to go check the mail or if you’ve been away at school for three months- makes you feel so loved. Dogs provide people with a sense of appreciation, love, and gratitude that many don’t receive from other humans. As a college student, not feeling loved and appreciated is not something you want to deal with on top of everything else. So, having a dog as a companion is a great way to solve this.
2. Companionship
“Dogs are a man’s best friend.” That’s really all I need to say here. I’ll also include, though, that your dog will always be there for you. Loneliness is often a contributor to depression, a dog is perfect to fill any lonely void.
3. Happiness
Dogs create happiness. If you haven’t felt the direct happiness that dogs create, than you have definitely witnessed it. Here at SMU when you’re at a Boulevard you’ve seen the amount of people crouched down in their nice clothing to pet a puppy or hug a dog, and you’ve heard the change in their tones like their talking to a baby or a little kid. It’s just an effect that dogs have on people. Dogs are also doing silly things all the time. This creates a world of happiness; I know when I’m feeling down my friends will send my puppy videos to cheer me up. Or, even if I’m not feeling down, it always brightens my day even more when someone tags me in a cute puppy video on Instagram or Facebook. Puppies just put a smile on people’s faces, why else would their videos go viral?
4. Health
Studies have proven time and time again that dogs relieve stress. Relieving stress helps your body become and stay healthy by lowering blood pressure and forcing you to be active with your dog. But physical health is not the only thing dogs help with, they are beneficial to mental health as well, i.e. therapy dogs. Why else would therapy dogs come to the libraries for students to pet, play with, and love on during finals? Puppies make people healthier; healthier people are better students.
5. Responsibility
Lastly, dogs teach responsibility. To be a successful student, one must be responsible. Pets teach responsibility. A students must be timely and organized- planning when to take the dog outside, feed it, walk it, and also balance his or her own social and academic life. This balance teaches a responsibility completely different from just having to turn in papers on time.
SaveSaveSaveSave