Yale Law School May (or May Not) Have a Therapy Dog for Students Yale Law Students Check a Border Terrier Out of Library for Stress Relief

There's no doubt law students are super stressed out. On top of a busy academic load, who knows if they're even going to have jobs after graduation? Enter Monty the therapy dog, available for check out from the Yale Law School library. A 30-minute play session with Monty is the perfect stress relief—if he actually exists.

The myth of Monty—short for "General Montgomery"—first surfaced last fall on the popular blog Above the Law. The border terrier was allegedly in a basket behind the circulation desk, but the school later issued a denial about Monty's existence. Now New York Magazine's reporting that Yale students have received a memo saying that, Monty is back and available for checkout. According to the memo from Law Librarian Blair Kauffman,

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The law library intends to run a three day pilot program starting on March 28, 2011 during which students will be able to “check out” our certified library therapy dog, Monty for thirty minute periods. We hope that making a therapy dog available to our students will prove to be a positive addition to current services offered by the library. It is well documented that visits from therapy dogs have resulted in increased happiness, calmness, and overall emotional well-being.

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And, even though Monty is hypoallergenic, "visits will be confined to a dedicated non-public space in the library to eliminate potential adverse reactions from any library user who might have dog-related concerns. Kauffman also says they'll be looking for student feedback on whether to have therapy dogs available "during stressful periods of the semester, for example during examinations."

GOOD is a dog-friendly workplace so we know first-hand how a little playtime with a pooch can improve moods. If reports of Monty are a another hoax, maybe they shouldn't be. Here's to more stress-relieving "Monty's" on campus!

photo via Above the Law