By Daniel Bestul, Jordon Lawrenz, Greg Bintz & Zach Glander
On Monday, March 6th, 2023, the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay (UWGB) Good Times Programming hosted Pause for Paws. The event took place during a two-hour window, allowing UWGB students to interact with a number of therapy dogs. With spring break on the horizon and midterms in full effect, Pause for Paws was a “howling” success among the student body.
Poster for Pause for Paws event
The Pause for Paws event is dedicated to giving UW-Green Bay students an opportunity to take a break and spend some relaxing time with certified therapy dogs. Students’ mental health is incredibly important, so having these various opportunities is beneficial. Pause for Paws has been taking place ever since last year, 2022. A total of 63 students attended the event, but many other students also expressed interest. There was a waitlist of over 15 people. At the organized event, students cycled through four stations where dogs were waiting to be loved and to give away their unconditional affection.
Therapy dog takes in pets by getting belly rubs (Photo Credit: Emma Bliskey)
”People attended this event because this event was held around the same time as the midterms. Dogs are great emotional support for many of the students, so a lot of students were very eager to be able to be relieved of their stress when petting these adorable dogs!” Ryleigh Pierce mentioned. Pierce recently took over as the leader of this annual event.
One of the staff members watches over a therapy dog who is waiting for a student to come to visit (Photo Credit: Daniel Bestul)
Junior Lindsey Kaat enjoyed her first time attending Pause for Paws, “This was my first time going to Pause for Paws, and I loved it! All the dogs were so cute and definitely reduced my stress.”
Kaat described it as a perfect time to take a minute and be stress-free, “I feel like a bunch of students is going through a lot of stress with school and other things. It is a good time to relax and take your mind off of anything bothering you.”
Bailey, one of the therapy dogs, is obeying her owner’s commands. (Photo Credit: Daniel Bestul)
To attend this event, students had to get their tickets beforehand. There were four half an hour segments for students to come in and see the dogs. Pierce expressed great importance for the dogs to be on campus, “It’s important that there are wellness-related events accessible for students, and what better way to help support this than inviting therapy dogs to our campus to offer their own special effort?”
Students were given the opportunity to pet and spend time with the dogs. (Photo Credit: Emma Bliskey)
Overall the event was a success for students. Students can take away the relief of stress from midterms and feel recharged after visiting with these dogs. The next Pause for Paws event will be held next year. Pierce is going to see if she can hold the event once every few months so those who weren’t able to participate this year can join again soon.