PAL dog owners bring puppies to RM

On Tuesday Nov. 5, PAL Puppy Day was held in the dance studio as an activity for mental health week. PAL dog owners brought their dogs for the students of Richard Montgomery to pet to lower stress. 

  Members of PAL enjoyed bringing their dogs to RM to help students destress. Cathy Loyd, a PAL dog owner, said, “We just love spreading smiles and happiness to people, especially those in stressful situations, like schools and hospitals. So it’s a win-win situation.” 

Many students loved the idea of PAL Day. “I really liked it because I thought it was really soothing. I love dogs and so when I got to pet all those dogs, I was so happy and it made me feel so much more calm,” sophomore Natalie Weger said. “School is really stressful and I’m glad that RM is letting dogs come to our school because it really helps students a lot.” 

However, so many people showed up to PAL Day that not everybody got to see the dogs. Students that were lucky enough to get to the room only had five minutes to interact with the dogs. “I think it was really, really crowded so that made it a little bit ineffective because not everybody could go,” freshman Aarushi Gupta said. “In the future, if the dogs are able to come, it should be on two days and be split up by grade.” 

Members of administration who were part planning PAL day agreed. “If we have the event in a larger space and we limit the number each day to just one or two classes, it’ll be much more manageable,” IB coordinator Nancy Shay said. “It was a huge success. We had never done it before, so we’re excited about doing it again as often as possible.” 

Despite the short time students got with the dogs, a lot want PAL back. “I think it was great, and a lot of people came, so I would definitely love to see the dogs again,” Weger said.