A Pawfect Way to Let Go of Stress
During the second to last day of Zen Week, Madame Woof Woof brought an array of animals to Marianopolis.
Angela Kovalak, the school psychologist, was standing by the door when I arrived at the activity. She greeted students, but also acted as a barrier to prevent the curious black dog in A-109 from escaping into the hallway.
We have at least one activity with animals each semester and usually time it with exams.
– Angela Kovalak, Marianopolis’ psychologist.
She enjoys seeing people who look tense when they enter come out relaxed. “Their faces light up, their shoulders go down…”
Inside, twenty or so students are petting a dog or a rabbit, holding birds on their fingers or staring at a fishbowl.
“I don’t feel very stressed generally, but this is very nice,” says a student with the grey rabbit on her lap. Meanwhile, a group of friends transfer an elegant white bird from one girl’s finger to someone else’s. I was surprised by the calmness of all the creatures, especially the birds, who did not try to fly away once during the ten minutes or so I was there.
I finally talked with the lively woman behind this operation, Karine Doucet, also known as Madame Wouf Wouf. She explains that this activity was closer to animation than conventional zootherapy. Nevertheless, she enjoys seeing students leave in a better mood. As per Madame Wouf Wouf, pet therapy is “infinite.”
