There were four 5 1/2 month old PAALS service dogs sprawled on the floor, eagerly wagging their tails at students who walked past them. The dogs and their handlers came to USC’s campus as a part of the Pet-a-PAALS Service Dog program to help students deal with the stress of the start of the semester.
The Pet-a-PAALS Service Dog program was created in fall 2013 by Sarah Wilson, a former graduate assistant at Campus Wellness, as a part of the Keep Calm campaign.
According to the 2013 USC National College Health Assessment, 24.3 percent of students reported that stress is the number one impediment to their academic success. The PAALS program serves as an opportunity for students to manage their stress.
PAALS, or Palmetto Animal Assisted Life Services, is a program that trains puppies to become assistance dogs. The dogs are trained to help children with autism, soldiers with PTSD and people with disabilities. In addition to helping with daily life, the dogs are therapeutic.
PAALS dog handler Nick Borselloine said when the dogs come to USC’s campus, it serves as a “temporary cure for homesickness that relaxes people.
"Just the feeling of petting a dog is calming,” Borselloine said.
In addition to the monthly Pet-a-PAALS Service Dog program, there is Cocky’s Canine PAALS club and Weekend PAALS, a program where students can take a dog home on the weekends, according to PAALS' Animal Care Coordinator Mary Clair.
“Personally, I think the Weekend PAALS is a great source of stress relief and allows students the opportunity to have a pup some weekends without all the responsibility added on of actually owning their own dog,” Clair said in an email.
The monthly Pet-a-PAALS Service Dog program is another vital part to the dogs’ training. The visits expose the dogs to new people, places, smells and sounds. The dogs are given the chance to socialize and learn to behave in crowds.
81.1 percent of students reported that they feel average to above average stress while at school. The PAALS program is a way for students to step back from what’s bothering them and de-stress. Many students look forward to the visits, especially in the midst of class assignments.
“It gives a lot of people study breaks," Bridgette Wellslager, a second-year biology student said. "It allows people to relax and have something to look forward to in between exams
And when they're overwhelmed by the stressors of college, it's easy for students to get homesick. Maureen Leary, a PAALS employee, recalled last year during one of the dogs' first visits, a homesick student was overjoyed to see the dogs. Later, the girl’s mother called PAALS to thank them for coming to campus.
“Her mom called us up and said, ‘You know, you’re doing an amazing job. She was really having a hard time, and this made her feel better,’” Leary said.
The dogs will return again on Feb. 10 on Davis Field, weather permitting. Otherwise, they will be in the Thomson Student Health Center again.
“It’s just amazing to see the changes they make in people’s lives,” Leary said.