Do you have a pet? Do any of your employees? When you’re away from home at the office, your pet sits home, alone, waiting for you to get back. The excited bark or the quiet sitting at the door you enter through is their way of welcoming you home after hours away from each other.
There may be a routine attached to your arrival, like shedding your work clothes for something more casual, then feeding your pet and making dinner for yourself or you and your family.
For years now, some workplaces have instated a ‘bring your pet to work day’ and some have even made the addition of the ‘office cat’ or ‘office dog’ and brings the whole workforce together to care for the animal. Adding furry friends to the office has done wonders to change the way we work and how we feel while at the office.
Table of Contents
Preparing Your Workplace to Become Pet-Friendly
Speak with Employees
Choose the Type of Animal
Adopt From a Local Shelter
Caring for the Pet
Bring Your Pet to Work Day
Legal Considerations
Service/Working Dogs
Making Your Workplace Pet-Friendly
Provide Pet-Friendly Workspaces
Pet-Friendly Amenities
Time for Pets
Hybrid Work
Benefits of a Pet-Friendly Workplace
Reduced Stress Levels
Increased Work-Life Balance
Increased Employee Morale
Increased Productivity
Increased Employee Retention Rate
Positive Workplace Culture
Improved Customer Perception
Employee Bonding
Final Thoughts
Preparing Your Workplace to Become Pet-Friendly
Creating a pet-friendly workplace is more than just telling employees they are now allowed to bring their pets to work every Monday and Friday (or other designated day(s)). There are many things
Speak with Employees
Before instated any new policy, program, or other change in the office that will directly impact how or where your employees do their jobs, make time to speak with them about the upcoming change. You could send an email or survey, but not every employee will read or respond in a timely manner. Hold a meeting, or speak with employees individually to get their feedback on the idea. In addition to the feedback on the general idea, ask employees about any allergies. For example, if even one employee is allergic to cats, do not consider a cat at all.
Choose the Type of Animal
Along with the yes/no feedback of whether or not to ‘employ’ an animal in the workplace, make sure to ask your employees’ opinions on the type of animal(s) they want to see in the office. Even tempered dogs often visit and interact with every interested employee. Choosing the right breed for your environment is a big decision as well.
The independent nature of cats, along with their tendency to gravitate toward particular people can make the idea of an ‘office cat’ for overall workforce morale a difficult goal to achieve.
Adopt From a Local Shelter
The slogan ‘don’t shop, adopt’ is akin to ‘buy local’ – something you want your potential customers or clients to do, so make sure you keep the same mentality when choosing a pet. Many shelter pets are adorable, sweet animals ready to give their love to someone wanting to give love back.
Speak with shelter staff to help make the best decision for your needs and wants, and to explore the known history each animal before choosing the office’s ‘fur-ever’ friend. If you have a reason you must buy, research local breeders and avoid ‘mills’ that focus on ‘production’ rather than quality animals.
Caring for the Pet
The animal brings love and happiness to everyone. Get all employees involved in the care and feeding of the animal during the work day. Refilling food or water dishes, grooming – to cut down on animal hair around the workplace – walking the dog on breaks, and the other needs of the animal can be a shared duty employees may look forward to.
Make sure the animal is trained for the environment. A cat that isn’t litter trained (make sure litter boxes are placed away from work areas) or a dog that isn’t housebroken can make for a messy environment and cleaning up pet messes distracts from work and makes the animal a distraction more than a welcome addition.
Bring Your Pet to Work Day
The alternative to an ‘office pet’ is giving employees the ability to bring pets from home. Employees with pets at home will jump at the opportunity to bring their furry friend into the office on a regular basis. Whether daily, weekly, or monthly, you need to set rules and expectations for personal pets.
These personal pets may gravitate toward others in the office as well, but will undoubtedly return time and again to their owner’s side. Clearly state that when an employee brings their pet to work, that pet is their responsibility through the day. Depending on the demands of the animal like walks, feeding, cleaning, and more, the care of the animal during the day may be a hindrance to that particular employee’s work day.
Legal Considerations
Much like instating the pet-friendly policy, there are things to be done to make the workplace more amenable (and legal) for pets. There may be local laws or ordinances companies must follow when allowing animals in offices, and even bylaws that vary by industry.
Make sure your liability insurance covers animal accidents like bites. If allowing employee pets in the office, consider asking them to provide their own insurance, or require them to cover any accidents or damage caused by their animal.
If your company leases office or retail space, check your lease terms and request an addendum that allows animals in the space.
Service/Working Dogs
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has set forth certain rights and rules for people with disabilities. The dogs of employees who require the assistance of the animal for daily tasks must be welcomed into the office environment. ADA guidelines states employees must request that the animal be present, and employers must make all reasonable accommodations to support the disabled employee and their needs.
Making Your Workplace Pet-Friendly
Now that you’ve made the decision to provide a pet-friendly workplace, there are some steps to take to bring the plan to fruition.
Provide Pet-Friendly Workspaces
Not all employees are charmed by a dog or cat under the table in a conference room, or their coworkers’ pets wandering the office looking for treats or head scratches during work hours. For employees that choose to bring their pets to the office, consider converting an area of the office into a workspace where pets are welcome as well. Employees bringing their pets as well as employees willing to interact with the visiting animals can choose to sit in this area, away from coworkers who would rather focus solely on the job.
Pet-Friendly Amenities
If you allow employees to bring their cats to work, having a litter box or two, away from workspaces and other areas like breakrooms or kitchenettes where all employees gather, is a good idea. When employees bring a personal pet to work with them, you may want to require they bring things like food and water bowls, but provide areas for pet relief and waste disposal.
Designate an area outside where dog owners can take their dogs for exercise and relief. Provide waste bags and a lined trash can for collection and disposal with regular trash pickups.
Time for Pets
Employees who bring pets to the office will need time to care for them, which may or may not occur at the same time the employee needs a lunch or other scheduled break. Much like the leniency given to smokers or coffee drinkers who sometimes take more frequent breaks, allow pet owners the extra breaks to see to their pet’s needs.
Hybrid Work
If allowing pets into the office environment is voted down by a majority of workers, or prohibited by local laws or your landlord, give employees the opportunity to work from home on certain days of the week. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, workers were sent home to work, which gave them the ability to spend more time around their pets.
Even your employees who don’t own pets will appreciate the opportunity to work from the comfort of home every now and then.
Benefits of a Pet-Friendly Workplace
There are a number of benefits to a pet-friendly office, both for your business and your employees health and well-being while at work.
Reduced Stress Levels
The presence of a pet, whether at home or in the workplace, significantly reduces stress levels. Mental health is as important as physical health. A 2020 study from the Human Animal Bond Research Institute indicated that 74% of pet owners reported improved mental health, and 75% reported the mental health of a family member had improved.
A pet-friendly work environment also leads to better overall health. Having pets in the office leads to lower blood pressure and increased levels of positive hormones like seretonin. It also leads to fewer sick days and increased productivity during the workday.
Increased Work-Life Balance
Work-life balance has become a major reason employees choose to take a new job or leave a current position. Making the workplace pet-friendly – bringing a piece of home to work – makes a work-life balance connection that no amount of remote work or paid vacation can replicate.
Increased Employee Morale
Even employees who don’t have their own pets at home are often charmed when a coworker’s dog or cat stops by for a cuddle.
Increased Productivity
When employees are happier, they work better. When employees work better, they’re more productive. Even with the added breaks for routine pet care, you’ll see a spike in productivity as employees work in a less stressful environment and collaborate more, using the bonding over a pet to forge better working and social relationships that boost employees’ ability to get a job done quickly and efficiently.
Increased Employee Retention Rate
When a company responds positively to employee needs and requests, those employees are likely to stick around longer. When employees stay on the job, it negates your need to continually hunt for new employees to fill vacancies, or decide to combine existing employees’ responsibilities to cover gaps while you look for someone to fill the role.
Positive Workplace Culture
As long as the decision to make your office a pet-friendly workplace came at a large consensus, adding pets to the workplace leads to a more positive workplace culture. While not centering your company culture around the pet policy, the change in culture it provides has positive rather than negative ramifications.
Improved Customer Perception
When customers get wind of your pet-friendly policy, it often improves their perception and opinion of your business. They see you value your employees’ needs, wants, and most importantly their physical and mental well-being and happiness.
Retail businesses where dogs and cats can be seen wandering the aisles or lounging in the front window attract customers who just want to come in and see the animal, but may end up leaving having purchased a product or service from you.
For businesses with a customer or client base that does not visit a physical location, when they hear your business is pet-friendly, they will seek you out over a competitor that is not.
Employee Bonding
Coworkers aren’t always friends outside the walls of the business. Being friendly with coworkers to get the job done during work hours is a must, whether or not they get along outside of the office.
When employees are allowed to bring their pets to work, coworkers see and take note. Employees who only previously knew they each had a dog come to find they own the same breed. That common link brings them closer together socially, as they can exchange relatable stories.
Just visiting a coworker’s desk to say hello to the dog or cat will undoubtedly spark a conversation: what’s his name? How old is she? Where did you get him? In learning about the animal you learn about your coworker and find other things to bond over as well.
Final Thoughts
Boost your business and boost employee happiness by becoming a pet-friendly workplace. Bringing pets into the workplace has many benefits, but it a tough task to handle alone.
The staff at Realty Asset Advisors can help you make the necessary changes to ease the transition between non-pet friendly to pet-friendly so you can start reaping the rewards.
Contact us today!
