Bringing Pets to College
US News and World Report
carries a story on the pet care option at university:
For many students, leaving the comforts of home and moving in to college for the first time can be a difficult transition. Thoughts of leaving family, friends, and high school behind can conjure feelings of fear and discomfort, but at some schools, students can bring a piece of home along to ease the process.
While bringing a pet from home can ease the transition to college life, there are many other advantages to housing a pet, says Wendy Toth, editor of pet resource site Petside.com. “A lot of students take in a lot of different factors when deciding where they want to go to school, but I know of lot of [them] worry about the feeling of fitting in,” Toth says. “A huge advantage is that pets provide social support.”
By and large most UK universities don’t allow pets of any kind in halls of residence, for obvious reasons. But there are places, particularly institutions with Vet Schools, where students are encouraged to bring their own horses (I am told). Really though, are pets the right vehicle for providing ‘social support’ for students leaving home for the first time? I don’t think so.
So, if you want to share your student existence with a guinea pig, a gecko or a goldfish, it looks like you’ll have to head to the USA for the time being. The article also names 10 of the most pet friendly institutions, including one that offers a ‘Doggy Daycare’ service. Coming to a UK university soon?
