Many universities have instituted “Pet Your Stress Away” programs, where students can come in and interact with cats and/or dogs to help alleviate some of the strain. Scientists at Washington State University have recently demonstrated that, in addition to improving students’ moods, these programs can actually get “under the skin” and have stress-relieving physiological benefits. “Just 10 minutes can have a significant impact,” said Patricia Pendry, an associate professor in WSU’s Department of Human Development. “Students in our study who interacted with cats and dogs had a significant reduction in cortisol, a major stress hormone.” Pendry published these findings with WSU graduate student Jaymie Vandagriff last month in AERA Open, an open-access journal published by the American Educational Research Association. _____ This is the first study that has demonstrated reductions in students’ cortisol levels during a real‑life intervention rather than in a laboratory setting. The study...