Pet therapy brightens up ‘Blue Monday’

The third Monday in January has come to be known as “Blue Monday” — billed as the most melancholy day of the year.

The date was reportedly determined based on an equation that took into account the weather, amount of debt, length of time since Christmas and length of time since failing at new year’s resolutions.

The concept is widely panned as pseudoscience, considering it was popularized by a travel company in 2005.

However, the impact of gloomy weather and lack of sunlight is recognized as a factor in Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.) — a very real condition described by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) as a type of depression that occurs usually in fall or winter.

Inspired by CAMH’s successful pet therapy program, pop-up puppy parks took over the lobbies of six Cadillac Fairview (CF) buildings on Monday. The initiative was meant to help puplift the spirits of office workers in downtown Toronto who may be feeling the dreary effects of winter.

“We are…acknowledging ‘Blue Monday’ which is widely considered the gloomiest, most melancholy day of the year…and it’s widely considered that puppies help make people’s day brighter,” said CF spokesperson Patrick Nurse.

CAMH pet therapy volunteer coordinator Theresa Conforti said the puppy park event is a great way to spread awareness about mental health issues.

“I do believe that de-stigmatizing mental illness is so important. The puppy park here gives people the idea that its okay to have some challenges and there is support,” she said.

The pet therapy program at CAMH enlists family dogs and volunteers to serve clients who cannot afford or keep their own dogs and also bridges the gap for clients who need treatment but must leave their dogs at home.

“[The dogs] give that unconditional love, that sort of support on a daily basis for someone that’s feeling very sad or lonely, has some mental health challenges — the dog just makes them feel that it’s all good,” said Conforti.

Nurse said the response to the pop-up puppy park initiative has been overwhelming and they plan on expanding and evolving the program in the years ahead.

Click through the gallery below for a some pet therapy via pictures.