What do you do when your dog has separation anxiety? You put him to work. At least, that’s what one Canadian woman did when she found an office job for her 4-year-old Cocker Spaniel Poodle mix.
Now Hiring
Meg Maclean’s dog Sully was having a hard time when her family departed their house in Edmonton, Alberta, in the morning.
“When we leave the house, Sully will do anything in his power to escape and join us. If he does stay in the house, he will cry. You can hear his cries from several doors down, it’s quite heartbreaking,” the dog mom told CTV News.
Though there are two other pups at home, Sully is “super social” and would rather be around people. Maclean had a wild idea: what if she could find Sully an office job where he could interact with others and ease his separation anxiety at the same time?
Maclean put up a post on Reddit inquiring about interest in an “office dog” – and was quickly overwhelmed by the response.
“It was really, really exciting to see how many people banded together to try and get Sully a job,” Maclean told CTV News. “It ended up being the highest-rated post on Reddit Edmonton for like three days.”
To his dog mom’s surprise, Sully was in high demand. He netted several job offers at venues like cannabis shops and tattoo parlors. But then a neighbor, Stephanie Reddecliff, reached out. She also has a dog, Abby, who suffers from separation anxiety. Reddecliff, a soil specialist, brings Abby to her workplace at a small consulting company. Reddecliff offered to bring Sully along to the office, too.
A Perfect Solution for Separation Anxiety
So far, Sully is settling in just fine at his new “job.”
“When I take Sully he usually beats me to the front door and if I don’t get that door open fast enough he’s like, ‘Hello, we need to get in.’ So he rushes me in and then he runs straight for our receptionist,” Reddecliff told CTV News.
Needless to say, Sully’s coworkers are over the moon about having him on staff.
“Everyone there, they love dogs, so seeing a new dog around the office to kind of pet and play with is always welcome,” Reddecliff said. “Having the dogs there is definitely good for morale.”
As for Sully’s dog mom, she says she’s grateful that Sully has a place to go where he can interact with people every day. His job has truly proven to be a balm against separation anxiety.
Let’s just hope Sully doesn’t discover the employee snack stash anytime soon.
