 A dog visits the office of a digital marketing company in downtown Chicago. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune) Do you take your dog to work? CAN you take your dog to work? Want to know how to talk your boss into LETTING you take your dog to work? According to Ladders Inc, more and more companies are “wagging their tail at the idea of dog-friendly offices, which have been scientifically proven to calm employees, while boosting morale and office interaction.” Career and branding expert Wendi Weiner says that having dogs in the office can make you “happier, more positive, more enthusiastic about coming to work, and even friendlier.” How to get your boss to allow YOU to bring YOUR dog to the office? THAT is the question! Read Ladders' take on this, "How to Talk Your Employer into a Dog-Friendly Office," then pass it on to the Head Honcho.  Frank van Delft—Getty Images/Cultura RF And add USA Today to the mix. In "Dogs in the workplace: Good for you, your employees, your bottom line," they argue that dogs in the office help in recruiting and retaining employees and making it easier for employees to stay late because they don't have to rush home to walk or feed Fido.
Further, they say, having dogs in the workplace helps employees connect and communicate with one another. In "Why Bringing Your Dog to Work Can Be Great for (Almost) Everyone," Time reports that Amazon's Seattle headquarters has had dogs in the office for about 20 years and currently has over 1,000 dogs attending regularly. Jennifer Fearing, co-author of "Dogs at Work: A Practical Guide to Creating Dog-Friendly Workplaces," says dogs in the office encourage various departments to collaborate. The dogs, it seems, serve as social bridges. About 11 percent of U.S. pet owners work in places that allow animals, according to the American Pet Products Association. But, what if someone doesn't like dogs? Or worse, is allergic? (For some, that just means a runny nose, but for others... it can be life-threatening.) Fearing proposes rules and protocols to make them more comfortable. Such as... HEPA filters, requirements to wash bedding weekly, and maintaining "Dog-Free" zones. Still... there will always be the nay-sayers. Like Linda McCormick, writing "Against office dogs," in The Week. For a fair assessment of the pros and cons, see The Balance Careers piece, "The Pros and Cons of Bringing Your Pet to Work." A plus, they say, is that a dog-friendly office improves the company image, making a company seem more progressive. There are cons, of course... like pee pee on the carpet. Still, again, a "pet policy" and some rules go a long way... Regardless, if you can convince your boss that dogs are cool for the bottom line... How awesome would that be to take your doggie kid to work? VERY!
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