Our Story
The Puppy Lab is a volunteer organization at MIT. Its mission is to leverage the scientifically-proven stress-relieving effects of animal interaction to improve the state of community mental health and wellness. We envision an inviting space where dogs are available in weekly shifts for anyone to visit. It provides an avenue for community members to connect outside of school and work, with unconditional puppy love catalyzing deep, lasting relationships. Thank you for supporting this initiative! Please let us know if you have any feedback, would like to volunteer in other capacities, or would like to remain informed of developments of the Puppy Lab!
Weekly Lab Hours
Come by to hang out with the pups! Weekly lab hours occur for 1 hour a week, with the day and time being determined each semester from volunteer availability. For Spring 2022, Puppy Lab is on Fridays from 11:30-12:30 in Lobby 10 (Killian Court weather permitting)! The events are open to all, so feel free to swing on by!
To get more up-to-date information on lab hours, cancellations, and special events such as finals week lab hours, please follow our facebook page or instagram page.
Hope to see you there!
Event Request
Along with weekly lab hours, we do our best to fulfill requests from the MIT community such as dorms, independent living groups, clubs, labs, etc. The events should be benefit the community. If you would like to make a request for Puppy Lab teams to come to your event, fill out the form here.
Please fill out this form 3-4 weeks before your event will take place in order to give us time to plan.
Going forward, if you do not fill it out within that time frame, the event will not be added to our calendar. If if is added to the calendar, you will get a confirmation email where you can monitor sign ups. Please also be aware that our ability to attend an event depends on the availability of our teams.
Lastly, please note that for these events puppy labs does not take place in planning the events. Please fill out the form with the exact time, dates and hours. For the puppies to be happiest, only fill out a maximum 2 hour window, preferably 1 hour.
Join Puppy Lab
Are you a member of the MIT community? Do you have a dog that loves attention, and enjoys being fawned over by a multitude of students? Are you interested in helping us with Puppy Lab events as a therapy dog team? Send an email to puppylab@mit.edu and we’d love to give you and your furry friend more information on how to join!
FAQ
Q: Are there any qualifications for my dog to join?
A: No, but your dog should be trained to socialize with dogs and people. Your dogs behavior is your responsibility and you should have him or her under control at all times.
Q: I want to attend puppy labs. Are the dogs trained therapy dogs?
A: No. These dogs are pets in the MIT community and you should treat them as such.
Q: I dont have a dog but I want to volunteer. What can I do?
A: You can assist with planning events and administrative tasks. You can also bring dogs who are not yours (as long as the dog parent is ok with it and the dog is properly trained).
More questions? Email puppylab@mit.edu