The Pet House, also known as Monroe Hall, is a residence hall at Washington & Jefferson College that allows students to live with their family pets. It has been identified as part of a growing trend of

pet-friendly dormitories Pet-friendly residence halls have appeared as a number of colleges and universities in the United States. In 2008, ''USA Today'' estimated that at least 12 colleges and universities allows some form of pet-friendly living arrangements. Students at ...

across the United States.

Facilities

Monroe Hall is part of the Presidents' Row cluster of residence halls. It is one of several other "Theme Communities" developed by the college; others include "Leadership & Service Community" and the "International House."

Origins and growth

Plans for the Pet House began shortly after animal lover

Tori Haring-Smith Tori Haring-Smith is the former president of Washington & Jefferson College. Education Haring-Smith received a bachelor's degree from Swarthmore College and doctoral and master's degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. As a ...

took office as college president in January 2005. She had been inspired by her own experience as a freshman at

Swarthmore College Swarthmore College ( , ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1864, with its first classes held in 1869, Swarthmore is one of the earliest coeduca ...

, where she had a kitten. After pitching the idea of a Pet House to the board of trustees and the student body, many of whom have visions of "animal feces everywhere and dogs barking and keeping people awake." After persuading the rest of the administration that such a plan was feasible, college officials visited Eckerd College to see how their pet-friendly housing program operated. The '' Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'' reported in 2010 that "A recent visit to Monroe Hall found it quiet and clean. A large lawn around the dorm is where the pets can romp and play, often drawing the attention of students passing by. The pet owners are responsible for cleaning up after their pets." During the 2009-10 school year, 10 students lived in the Pet House; that number jumped to 34 in the 2010-11 school year. Thanks to the Pet House, Washington & Jefferson Collegct on the college community The college administration believes that the pet house provides a good on-campus experience and improves the college's competitiveness in recruiting potential students.

Policies

The college only permits "family pets" that have been owned by the student's family for greater than one year. Cats, dogs (except large breeds), small birds, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, turtles, and fish are all approved for the Pet House. All pets must have a clean bill of health from a veterinarian; all dogs and cats must be spayed or neutered. Pets are not permitted in the classroom.

References

{{Coord, 40, 10, 14.5, N, 80, 14, 23.2, W, display=title Washington & Jefferson College buildings University and college dormitories in the United States