The design of Purina’s PawsWay center in Toronto boosts the mood—and wellbeing—of all of its users, regardless of species. It is an indoor space where people can spend time with their pets and learn more about the joys, and responsibilities, of caring for them—while both the people and pets have fun. Inter-species bonding is particularly important as pets in Western societies often provide significant amounts of psychological support to their human companions.
On its website, PawsWay is described in this way: “Purina PawsWay on the Toronto Harbourfront is a one-of-a-kind pet centre devoted to bring the pet perspective to life. Launched in June, 2008, it’s a unique place where pet lovers can come together to learn, discover, and celebrate the world of cats and dogs. Bring your dog or cat. Take some training classes, join an event or discover our exhibits and explore the exciting world of pet behaviour. Walk through the Purina Animal Hall of Fame and read the amazing stories of our pet heroes. At the end of your stay enjoy a snack and a coffee with your pet at our pet-friendly café.”
Some of the features of the PawsWay center are particularly endearing—for example, a floor level pet water fountain below a usual height human one. Others acknowledge the reality of indoor pets—“Woops Stations” are equipped with the supplies needed to clean up pets’ indoor “indiscretions.” Finishes and surfaces are made of sturdy stuff, so all users can relax. Both human and pet wellbeing—physical and psychological—are supported by the design of the space, and multiple species can comfortably spend long periods of time there during cold Canadian winters.
Research has shown that being around pets is good for our psychological and physical health:
- Fitzgerald and Danner (2012) report that in-office pets reduce stress among owners and colleagues. Barker and his team found that “Although perceived stress was similar at baseline [determined by levels of cortisol in saliva when study participants woke up each morning]; over the course of the day, stress declined for the DOG [employees who bring their dogs to work] group with their dogs present and increased for the NODOG [employees who do not bring their dogs to work but have dogs] and NOPET [employees without pets] groups. The NODOG group had significantly higher stress than the DOG group by the end of the day. A significant difference was found in the stress patterns for the DOG group on days their dogs were present and absent. On dog absent days, owners’ stress increased throughout the day, mirroring the pattern of the NODOG group.”
- Animal/pet therapy is becoming more common in health care facilities as its merits are confirmed via research. Health care facilities should be designed so that there are spaces, outdoors and inside, that support the pet visits (Schweitzer, Gilpin, and Frampton, 2004).
- Children with Autism Spectrum disorder are more sociable when pets are present (O’Haire, McKenzie, Beck, and Slaughter, 2013). O’Haire and her team found that, “They also displayed more prosocial behaviors and positive affect (i.e., smiling and laughing) as well as less self-focused behaviors and negative affect (i.e., frowning, crying, and whining) in the presence of animals.”
Although both our dogs and our cats could venture with us to built environments outside our homes, we generally only take our dogs with us when we shop, work, hang out with friends in cafes that allow nonhuman guests, etc.
Designers need to consider the implications of having dogs at work and in other environments for interior and landscape design, particularly when there are multiple pets in the area. During the course of their time outside the home, dogs need to eat, drink, get exercise, sleep, relieve themselves, and be entertained (through window views, for example, or playing with toys), and the physical design of work and other environments can support these activities. Dogs, and their human companions, need to be able to isolate themselves from others when they feel tense – being in the doghouse can be good thing. In addition, workspaces, etc., may need to be dog-proofed, much as homes are baby-proofed, to prevent pets from chewing on electrical cords and other similar misadventures.
People designing public spaces where pets can spend time with their owners, will find much to emulate at Purina’s PawsWay center in Toronto.
Randolph Barker, Janet Knisely, Sandra Barker, Rachel Cobb, and Christine Schubert. 2012. "Preliminary Investigation of Employee's Dog Presence on Stress and Organizational Perceptions." International Journal of Workplace Health Management, vol. 5, no. 1 pp. 15 – 30.
Carey Fitzgerald and Kimberley Danner. 2012. “Evolution in the Office: How Evolutionary Psychology Can Increase Employee Health, Happiness, and Productivity.” Evolutionary Psychology, vol. 10, no. 5, pp. 770-781.
Marguerite O’Haire, Samantha McKenzie, Alan Beck, and Virginia Slaughter. 2013. “Social Behaviors Increase in Children with Autism in the Presence of Animals Compared to Toys.” Public Library of Science, http://www.plosone.org.
Mark Schweitzer, Marc, Laura Gilpin, and Susan Frampton. 2004. “Healing Spaces: Elements of Environmental Design That Make an Impact on Health.” The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, vol. 10, supplement 1, pp. s71–s83.