Pet accompanies owners in US offices

New York, June 23: On a typical day at Tellme Networks Inc., Jackson snores, Penny spends time learning Chinese and the bosses and workers are delighted.

Penny, a Labrador Retriever, and Jackson, a bulldog, are part of an effort at many U.S. companies to allow pets in the workplace. One survey shows nearly one in five U.S. companies allow pets at work.

Millions of Americans believe pets on the job lower absenteeism and encourage workers to get along, according to the survey by the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association.

Pets at Tellme, an Internet telecommunications company, help workers become friends, said Grant Shirk, whose dog Penny is learning Chinese commands from a colleague.

"She can do 'sit,' 'lie down' and 'shake hands,'" he said.

Tellme project manager Jaymer Delapena said co-workers know Jackson, famed for his loud snores, by name, and some like to take the dog into meetings.

"I'll be walking past a conference room and look inside and my dog is sitting in a chair around a table," he said.

Interest in pets at work is growing, say organizers of "Take Your Dog to Work Day," set for this Friday. Several thousand companies are expected to participate, up from a few hundred when the event began eight years ago.

Bureau Report


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