Southeast Residence Life to turn Myers Hall into first pet friendly dormitory

If you’re a student at Southeast and always wanted to have your furry friend at school, there’s good news for you. Southeast passed a pet friendly initiative that will take effect in August.

The initiative will be a pilot program for the 2018-2019 school year. At the end of the year, Residence Life will re-evaluate the program to see if it should be continued.

Myers Hall will dedicate four floors on one wing that will allow 92 students to have pets.

“There is some excitement from what I’ve seen, I think this provides an opportunity for students to stay on campus longer,” Residence Life director Kendra Skinner said.

Students will have to pay a non-refundable $200 registration fee to have a pet in the dorm. Also, if a student has a service animal or emotional support animal and wants to live in Myers, the fee will be waived by law under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Documentation will have to be provided to the school that the students has had the pet for a certain amount of time. Students must show they’ve owned dogs for at least 10 months. This is to help ensure animal obedience.

Dogs can weigh up to 50 pounds and cats up to 40 pounds. There are no breed restrictions.

The grassy area between Myers and Vandiver will be set up so dogs can take care of business. A station with plastic bags will be in place for clean-up.

Students who wants to bring a pet must fill out the required paperwork two weeks before the school year. The process will provide documentation of the animal to the university and provide students time to change rooms if they do not want to have a roommate who owns a pet.

Students living in the dorm are expected to keep their dog or cat in a kennel when they are not home and on a leash at all times outside the room.

Skinner said animals like lizards and turtles have to be kept in a 29-gallon tank. Gerbils and guinea pigs are also allowed, but snakes and spiders are not allowed.

To ensure pets are housebroken, dogs must be at least one year old and cats at least six months old.

Students will be charged for damages that occur to flooring or furnishings, and fines could be issued for pets making excessive noise. Facilities management will work with Residence Life to make accommodations for upkeep.

Le’Asia Morris, who’s going to be living at Myers next year, has high hopes for the program.

“Honestly, I think it will go well. I think there is just going to be a couple people because it’s a trial run. ... If it goes well, I think a lot more people will want to do it,” Morris said.

Southeast proposed the idea of a pet friendly residence after a number of other universities and colleges implemented similar programs. Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri, Austin Peay, Lion College in Arkansas, and the University of Illinois-Champaign pet friendly dorms.