Paws of CNY, a pet therapy organization, is helping ease anxiety for travelers at the Syracuse airport. An owner and her dog make efforts to ease the stress many flyers have that airports bring.
Transcript
MICHAEL GROSS: Peggy Byrne takes her golden retriever Ellie to the airport to help people with anxiety of not only flying…but every day life. Byrne thinks that the current global climate calls for more pet therapy dogs like Ellie.
PEGGY BYRNE: I think with all that’s going on in this world it’s more needed than ever.
GROSS: Byrne says people who are anxious to fly have really benefited from Ellie being at the airport.
BYRNE: They tell me that I just made their day.
GROSS: Paws of CNY want to assure people that is they are traveling, there can be a little less stress when they do.
MAN AT AIRPORT: Your hair is so fluffy. What do you do? What does momma shampoo you with?
GROSS: Michael Gross, NCC News.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — When COVID-19 first began in March of 2020, Peggy Byrne and her therapy dog Ellie, a golden retriever, were no longer allowed in public spaces to help people with their anxiety.
But now the long hiatus is over. After almost 18 months away, the two were able to return to venues like the Syracuse airport to support travelers with anxiety about flying. Byrne thinks that the current global climate calls for more pet therapy dogs like Ellie.
“I think that with all that’s going on in this world it’s more needed than ever,” Byrne said.
Byrne and Ellie have been involved with Paws of CNY, a pet therapy organization helping people with stress and anxiety, for about 10 years.
Paws of CNY has been sending owners and their dogs, like Byrne and Ellie, to ease travelers of the anxieties that flying causes in many people.
People who are very anxious of flying, who are flying for the first time or even people who have not flown in a long time may benefit from Ellie’s presence. Byrne said she notices Ellie uplifts their moods.
Byrne and Ellie will continue to be at the Syracuse airport on select days and soon return to the Syracuse University campus when the fall semester begins.