The word “puppy” alone is enough to make some people smile. Watching a yellow lab fetch his ball at the dog park or seeing a new video of a skateboarding bulldog on your TikTok timeline may sometimes be the highlight of your day, but did you know puppies could make work easier, too?
At our MT LIVE! West-Denver/Aurora event this July, attendees were greeted by six adoptable puppies, thanks to our partnership with Lifeline Puppy Rescue, a non-profit, no-kill shelter that rescues puppies and mom dogs from five states in the Rocky Mountain Region and keeps every rescue until they find their fur-ever home. Lifeline rescues from a network of 33 shelters and rescue groups to prevent euthanasia. So far, the shelter has saved more than 44,000 lives.
Many attendees learned about the puppies walking into our opening night reception, but it’s where they all went first—past the charcuterie trays and mahi-mahi tacos and straight to the panting puppy faces. Some attendees brought dog toys and donations with them for Lifeline Puppy Rescue, while others brought their children down to play and beg to bring one home.
[Related: Meetings Today LIVE! West Wraps Up in Aurora and Denver]
The puppies were adorable, yes, but what Lifeline Puppy Rescue and their puppies did was establish a sense of togetherness at our MT LIVE! West event as attendees bonded over their love for puppies, talked about their own pets back at home and developed connections and relationships with one another at the start of our three-day event. The puppies simply made it feel like a safe atmosphere to communicate.
Studies show dogs reduce overall stress, anxiety and depression levels, as well as ease loneliness, something many remote employees may experience without an office full of colleagues to socialize with. According to the American Heart Association, pets also reduce work-related stress, an experience two out of three employees said they have. As puppies help lower an employee’s heart rate, productivity increases.
Encouraging connections and bringing people together is yet another positive benefit of puppies in the workplace, according to a University of Southern Carolina study, as well as a core goal of the meetings and events industry. Building and establishing new relationships at the start of any event makes networking and socializing activities easier for attendees later on, as they have already tackled the hurdle of awkward introductions and now have the confidence to move forward with motivation, hopefully with a new friend or two at their side. The trust and communication dogs can promote between meeting attendees rivals stress while simultaneously increasing productivity, which then improves morale and reduces absenteeism.
Having dogs around makes it hard to have a “ruff” day, and they can make your meetings and events all the more memorable.
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