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Dog on demand: UVIC library loans out canine companion to students

Click to play video: 'University of Victoria’s “loaner dog”'
University of Victoria’s “loaner dog”
WATCH: The University of Victoria has a novel way of helping law school students reduce their stress level. As Neetu Garcha reports, it comes complete with a leash – Apr 21, 2017

The University of Victoria’s law library is turning the page on innovation by introducing a new item students can borrow: a dog.

Echo, a four-and-a-half-year-old black lab, can now be checked out from the library for 30 minutes at a time to give students a stress-relieving break with man’s best friend. She even comes with a “Bark-Code” and a call number: K9.

“She loves to play with her squeaky toys, we love giving her treats, we take her for walks [in the] forest out there,” law student Emily Compton said.
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Echo belongs to law professor Andrew Newcombe and has been a guest in his class before. The concept of using Echo as an on-demand therapy dog wasn’t easy to execute, library staff said, but students say she’s already created a paws-itive mood on campus.

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The UVIC Law Library is the only law library in Canada that provides a therapy dog or wellness companion, as Echo is called.

“From Echo’s perspective, it means that she gets a lot of socialization, she gets to play a lot, she gets to go on walks with people and lots of treats,” Newcombe said.

With files from Neetu Garcha

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