I finally got round to adopting a dog and am lucky enough to be able to take him into work with me. It got me wondering whether anyone had done any research about the effect of having pets at work. Of course, the answer is yes! But before I go any further, I’ll pay the dog tax: here he is looking very handsome. His name is Moddey Dhoo, which means black dog in Manx Gaelic.
It turns out that pets at work can be a very good thing, not just for the individual pet owners but for their colleagues and the organisation as a whole. Research has shown that our bonds with our pets can reduce blood pressure and anxiety and improve our sense of well-being. Pet-friendly employers have are seen as much better at supporting their employees’ well-being than employers who aren't pet friendly. And people who work at pet-friendly companies have higher engagement and better relationships with their supervisor and colleagues.
Now of course this isn’t to say that simply bringing a pet to work is going to fix things with a difficult boss. But perhaps it does give us a clue that the more we’re able to share the good parts of our lives with our colleagues (in this case, pets), the better those relationships will be. And from my personal experience, bringing a dog to work makes me happier and gives people a good excuse to come and have a chat!