Colleges are welcoming pets in dorms to reduce students' stress and anxiety

Pawprints on campus: Nocera playing with Zuko in her college dorm in St Petersburg, Florida. — AP

Crossing paths with dogs, cats and other animals is part of campus life for students at Eckerd College, a liberal arts school in Florida that allows pets to live in dormitories.

Sophie Nocera, an Eckerd se­­nior, said she probably knows the names of pets better than her fellow students.