<p>My yD was curious if there are any colleges that have "pet dorms" (by "pet" she meant a warm-blooded animal not kept in a bowl or cage). There are wellness dorms, language dorms, etc., right? So far, she claims that through her Facebook friends she found out that MIT and Reed have cat dorms - dorms, not off-campus apartments. Is it true? She is not the MIT kind, but she will be checking out Reed. Are there any other colleges allowing pets in on-campus housing? Sounds like a huge liability to me.</p>
<p>My S has adopted a House cat at his school. He wants one in his future. I don't see the negatives, as there are choices for those who may have an allergy. Getting to know a cat was one more new experience.</p>
<p>At Cornell there is a special dorm on North Campus known as Ecology House where certain sorts of pets are allowed. </p>
<p>Having a pet at college can be difficult. Different standards for pet care -- especially things like litterbox cleaning, exercise and dog walking, tolerance for noise and dirt -- while living in close dorm conditions generally won't make for a positive experience, even if it's a "pet dorm."</p>
<p>Dormitory living is tighter than most apartment or condo living -- and apartments and condos generally have pretty stringent pet restrictions.</p>
<p>A very different place from Reed, so it is may not be for your child, but Stephens College in Missouri has a dorm that allows small dogs.</p>
<p>My daughter has a pet rat (D is an animal science/prevet major, what can I say?) in her suite at Kansas State University. She had to get permission to keep a pet in the dorms from the Residence Life Coordinator and from her three suitemates. Actually, "Ruby" has become the mascot of the 8th floor, with residents dropping by to give her treats, etc. She's completely tame, loves the attention and, as a former lab rat, I'm sure that she prefers her new surroundings.</p>
<p>Eckerd College in Florida</p>
<p>I wouldn't want a litter box in my bedroom.</p>
<p>How does the student plan to travel on breaks? It can be difficult to get a cat/dog etc on an airplane, and I don't think you can put one on a bus or train.</p>
<p>Believe me, if I could send one of our pound rescues off to college with my daughter the rescuer, I would consider it, but I can't imagine it works out very well for anyone.</p>
<p>And the litterbox in a dorm room sounds pretty nasty, too.</p>
<p>a litterbox isn't nasty if it is kept clean. Not any worse than a pet cage- but some students live off campus just so they can have more pets- some of Ds friends had chickens- who bascially were pets. In fact she is driving up next weekend to Seattle, to bring up some chickens to their new home. ;)</p>
<p>One of the things she really liked about Reed was not only that they had a cat floor, but that some of her profs brought their dogs on campus and that the whole campus was pretty pet friendly- which our dog can attest to.
( In 1999 the yearly calendar featured theDogs</a> of Reed)
It makes it a homier place. :)</p>
<p>I had a dog from my sophomore year on. He was a well socialized guy and I was never at a loss of caretakers if I had an overnight field trip, etc. In fact, I had a lineup of people asking when I was going to be gone next and could they keep him. He even went to Europe with me. It's doable, enjoyable even, but you have to be willing to make sacrifices of sorts (live in the crummier apartments further away from school, etc.) And you need to be a responsible pet owner - clean up after them and don't allow random barking, etc. BTW, this was at UC Davis in the 70s.
As far as litter boxes go, I've entered some dorm rooms that could give them a run for their money when it comes to odor! ;)</p>
<p>My S and bookworm's S attend the same school and there was a cat that lived in his house too - S loved it! The cat visited him daily. This year S is living off campus and thinking of asking the guys in the off-campus house if they'd mind a cat. If he gets the ok, he'd like his kitty to move to Pasadena. In the mean time I suggested he check out <a href="http://cat.caltech.edu/index.php/index.php?s=Home%5B/url%5D">http://cat.caltech.edu/index.php/index.php?s=Home</a> It seems there are lots of feral cats on campus and a club dedicated to taking care of them and dealing with kittens that are sadly dumped on the campus. I would imagine that's a problem on other campuses as well and if your D can't find a pet friendly dorm, maybe she could work with ferals or the local humane society.</p>
<p>In defense of my comment about the cat litter, above, I have had cats as pets my entire adult life, including two that lived well into their 20s. I have two dogs and a cat now. Animals are a huge responsibility,huge, and not too many college students are willing to make the necessary sacrifices to give the animals a good life.</p>
<p>Cat litters are not a big problem if they are kept very clean (but of course you have to get the trash out of your room immediately), but they still take up valuable floor space, and the litter gets thrown around the room pretty easily.</p>
<p>I've seen waaaaay too many dogs and cats dismissed and/or abused when they got sick, old or inconvenient. A lot of thought should go into a decision to give a pet a home when one is young or on the move a lot.</p>
<p>There was a newspaper article a while back that talked about the schools that allowed pets in dorms. This included schools that allowed dogs and cats. </p>
<p>You might google and see what you can find; I will try later when I have more time.</p>
<p>oaklandmom: That was one of the things I remember thinking was really cool when visiting Caltech - the way the students could more or less keep whatever pets they wanted around (I recall there being some rule that the animal had to fit into a certain size terrarium or aquarium, but I also recall students routinely ignoring or bending that rule ;)).</p>
<p>As I recall, one House actually had a pet goat.</p>
<p>I'm really allergic to most animals, so I can't imagine colleges allowing you to do that - if I wound up getting in one of those dorms I would NOT be a happy camper. I would assume they would have to spell out in big huge letters this dorm allows pets prior to room sign ups so you didn't sign up there - but I know at my college freshman year we didn't pick a dorm they put us somewhere. I somehow got put in an all girls dorm and hated it. Girls are so obnoxious, haha.</p>
<p>Re oaklandmom's post, Stanford has a similar organization. (Students are not allowed to have pets.)
<a href="http://www.stanford.edu/group/CATNET/%5B/url%5D">http://www.stanford.edu/group/CATNET/</a></p>
<p>I'm not in favor of students keeping personal pets on campus, but Eckerd's policy does address many of the potential problems. Considering the area, it may be one of the friendlier environments for pets; but northern students (of which Eckerd has many) have to get used to the idea of things like mandatory year-round flea treatment and sudden hurricane evacuations with their animals. [Incidentally, public hurricane shelters do NOT allow pets.]</p>
<p>Pets require a serious, long-term commitment. Students comprise a transient population. Even bringing along a pet from home is not always a practical or kind-to-the-animal idea; cats especially require an adjustment period in a new environment. </p>
<p>I don't have any problem with "institutional" animals if, say, a dorm adopts a pet and assumes the responsibility to keep it and care for it its entire life, through changes in dorm residents and personnel--and designating the dorm as such. I've seen this work well in public libraries, vet offices, nursing homes and assisted living facilities, retail stores. I know that having a pet can be a comfort, but students really need to think of the animal's welfare first.</p>
<p>
[quote]
So far, she claims that through her Facebook friends she found out that MIT and Reed have cat dorms - dorms, not off-campus apartments. Is it true?
[/quote]
MIT does indeed have four dorms which allow cats on certain floors. Not all of the floors on those dorms are cat floors, to allow students with allergies or students who don't like cats to still live in those dorms.</p>
<p>There's a whole [url=<a href="http://web.mit.edu/dormcon/pets/petpol.pdf%5Dpolicy%5B/url">http://web.mit.edu/dormcon/pets/petpol.pdf]policy[/url</a>] on having cats in the dorms -- the cats must be registered with the Housing Office, be speutered, and be up to date on all shots. As I understand it, although one student must be designated as the official owner at all times, many of the cats tend to stay with the dorm and ownership gets passed down from student to student.</p>
<p>My freshman is living on one of the MIT cat floors and likes having the cats around. He really misses his dog and says it helps to have the cats around. The cats sleep all over the dorm.</p>
<p>I would agree they are a big commitment- the students I saw with pets were fairly responsible.
My daughter opted not to chose a cat floor- ( where one student is allowed to bring a cat). She chose a different theme dorm- as far as I know, theme dorms do not have students who dont choose them, placed in them- unless there is no other space and they dont state a preference.
Our cats also lived into their 20s- although for urban cats that may be long lived.
While students are probably not dedicated to their dogs as much as former hydro racer Chip Hanauer, who only travels by beat up stationwagon, so his dog can come along, students are just as able to find alternative arrangements for their pets as need be, as any other adult who needs to travel without them.</p>
<p>I don't know about Boston & MIT, but Portland is very, very dog friendly. They have lots of dog parks- people are often taking their dogs on public transportation- the Pet shops are great and very knowledgable & there are restaurants/taverns and coffee shops that encourage dogs ( on the patios)
When I took our dog to see my D at her workstudy job in the computer lab, there were always other dogs in the lobby loving all the attention.
Her current roommate, graduated from Reed, and lived off campus most of his time there. He has an Australian cattle dog, who is a great dog, if a little too intelligent. ( she figured out that she could go through the window of a room that had a closed door, go onto the roof and through the window of an adjoining room whose door was open so that she could go into the rest of the house while everyone was gone)
Both he & my D have different schedules, so the dog gets a lot more walks and attention than if she had a family who was gone all day.
Other people don't want such a big commitment, so they might have a bird or rats ( most rooms are divided doubles or singles).
Being in a pet dorm is certainly a choice & easier to opt out of for someone who is allergic say than living in a dorm that is no smoking ( as all dorms are) but is inhabited by people who smoke underneath the windows or even sitting in their window.
( it may also keep down the nutria population)
:p</p>
<p>Thank you, everyone! We are a pet family and have a few of them around the house: dogs, cats, even had a rabbit (now deceased). I know that my yD will miss her kitties when she goes off to college, and she started checking what pet policies there are out there. She is very responsible when it comes to cleaning the boxes, feeding, etc. and the cats adore her. She once volunteered for a cat shelter cleaning boxes and socializing kitties, but that came to a screeching halt when the shelter adopted a new policy that nobody under 18 can work there. She said that she will look for similar volunteering options near her future college (wherever it is going to be) if she does not make it into the ones with pet dorms and within driving distance from the house (so her pet could come home with her when she goes back for breaks). I really hope that the former will be the case, knowing how my cats hate traveling.</p>