Therapy Dogs Ease Stress During City College Finals

Stress Unleashed: Santa Barbara City College students enjoyed a dog-induced breather from stress, anxiety, and fatigue heading into finals as a handful of certified therapy dogs posted up outside Luria Library. The Tuesday-afternoon mixer — dubbed Check Out a Dog and Lower Your Stress — featured Ellie (pictured) and a handful of fellow canines from All for Animals, a Santa Barbara nonprofit dedicated to enriching the lives of young people through animal interaction, which has been shown to decrease levels of the stress hormone cortisol while increasing endorphins. The college followed up the next morning with a free pancake breakfast at Friendship Plaza. SBCC’s end-of-semester final exams run December 5-10.