Super furry animals

Want to feel less stressed at the office? Then bring your dog to work. Grace Wynne-Jones meets some of the people who won't clock in without their four-legged friends.

Some of us are getting used to a new type of colleague who tends to wander around or sleep for hours, curled up somewhere cosy. He also keeps an eye out for snacks and likes to go for a walk at lunchtime. And before you decide he sounds like Seán from the post room it should be pointed out that this increasingly common colleague says woof and remains blissfully above office politics. His job is to cheer his human companions up, reduce their stress and perhaps even boost their productivity.

"People are taking themselves far too seriously," says Peter Fitzpatrick, a Dublin estate agent who brings his dog Prince to the office. "A dog really lightens up the workplace."

Even Philip Treacy, the milliner, has learned the value of having a dog on the premises. He calls his Jack Russell, Mr Pig, his best friend and says he "provides light relief when we're all working. Fashion can be such a serious business, you need someone clowning around".

Despite such enthusiastic converts, Ireland is lagging behind in the workplace-pets phenomenon. Many Americans bring Fido or even Felix to the office, and some UK workers are lobbying to have parrots and hamsters in addition to more conventional relaxants, such as tanks of tropical fish.

A survey of 1,500 workers and employers in Britain found that 56 per cent of respondents thought having pets in the office would boost the atmosphere and increase productivity. Their hunch seems to be backed up by the experience of the US, where the 73 per cent of companies that allow pets past reception claim it makes for a more productive workplace; 27 per cent said it had led to less absenteeism.

"My dog Prince is more keen to go to work than I am," jokes Fitzpatrick, who is managing director of the FQP agency. "He's great for reducing stress and he's a great friend of mine. Initially people found it amusing that I brought him to work with me, but now they expect him to be here. As soon as he arrives he wanders around the building, getting snacks."

Prince seems to have learned how to twist some of the building's other occupants round his paw. "He gets snacks from a software business and his fresh spring water from an Internet company."

After a snack tour Prince, a collie-spaniel cross, likes soaking up some rays on sunny days. "He lies close to the window in my office," says Fitzpatrick, "and he really enjoys his lunchtime walk. He's brown and white and very handsome, and no matter what humour you're in he's always delighted to see you. I find stroking him very therapeutic, and he encourages me to walk more. We don't hide him from clients. One client recently said he thinks it's nice that we have a dog in the office. He's very good-natured and friendly."

At Treacy's design studio in London Mr Pig rests in style, with Chanel couture and Versace cashmere in his basket. "He comes to the shows and the supermodels always ask after him," Treacy once said. "He's not terribly impressed with them, and he once bit Kristin McMenamy's hand. I did warn her." Mr Pig has never been tempted to chew on one of his owner's hats, but he is said to be rather fond of gnawing Manolo Blahnik shoes.

Now Mr Pig has a high-couture canine colleague. She's called Flip, is a mixture of Border terrier and Jack Russell and belongs to Treacy's assistant Waka. "I don't get anything like as stressed when Flip is around," says Waka. "She picks her toys up and asks us to throw them. It's good therapy for us." Numerous studies agree. Even the presence of a pet can lower heart rate and reduce blood pressure. The University of Warwick found that dogs improve the length and quantity of their owners' social encounters.

They are certainly great ice-breakers, although they can be a little too enthusiastic. Mickey, for example, a golden retriever owned by Jenny Halpern, a public- relations consultant, jumped on a potential client while she was quietly sipping tea. "It took three of us to pull him off," says Halpern. "Amazingly we got the account."

Jean MacGreevy, who runs the Craft Framing Gallery in Bray, Co Wicklow, has two doggy companions. Claude is a wheaten terrier named after the French composer Claude Debussy. "He sleeps most of the time. He has a bed in the shop and isn't sure why we have so many visitors," she says.

The other dog, Jack, a mixture of Labrador and collie, is there for only part of the week. "He actually belongs to my parents but he spends a lot of time here. He likes sunbathing outside the front door and barks when he wants to come in."

Jack and Claude seem to be good networkers. "The person in the shop next door takes Claude for walks," says MacGreevy. "And even though Jack is a part-timer he has made friends with a man who brings him biscuits."

Jack in particular makes sure his human colleagues don't overwork. "He helps us with timekeeping and somehow always seems to know when it's time for lunch or a walk."

Peter Wedderburn has cats and dogs at his veterinary practice in Bray, Co Wicklow. His receptionist, Valerie, brings in Mister, a Bichon Frise, and Max, a toy poodle. They seem very well behaved, although they occasionally bark at visitors. The practice's cats are called Caleb and Girlfriend. "Pets are playing an increasingly important role in Irish people's lives," says Wedderburn, although he doesn't believe it is yet normal to see commuters bringing their pets with them to the office. "But if the pet and the workplace are right an animal can help to create a calmer atmosphere."

But news from the US suggests it's not always a dog's life. Some companies are reportedly banning dogs because they've turned out to be a bit more active than the potted palms. They wander around, bark for attention, occasionally have little accidents and sometimes fight with other dogs. (To get around this kind of problem a UK company called Pat4paws has a team of dogs and "trained practitioners" who are prepared to pay short visits to companies to "diminish stress levels".)

Another potential difficulty is that, in particularly competitive environments, pets are in danger of becoming just another form of rivalry. "It could all end in a pet arms race, with each department getting bigger and fiercer pets," says one wary employee. Another says: "The last thing I want is a squawky parrot or a hamster chewing on everything in sight."

Even so, many people find pets can make the working day more playful and less stressful. "He's therapy for me," says Garry Fortune, another vet, about his cross terrier, Jack. Fortune has practices in Bray and Greystones, Co Wicklow, and Jack goes to work with him every day.

"He travels with me in the van and sits on the passenger seat with his paws on the window," says Fortune, who says he and Jack are very close. "It's easier for me to recognise how close people can get to their pets because of him. If I haven't got him with me I miss him, and he makes sure I get exercise. When I give him a break I give myself one, too."