When I worked at an animal shelter, if I had a stressful day at the office, I simply walked into the puppy room, cat kennel or dog kennel, looking for a friend to comfort me. Pets can provide an instant boost of happiness or laughter, depending on their personalities, and reminded me that when people get to be too much, it pays to seek out an animal friend.

We’ve long known the benefits of dogs and cats as friends and companions; now I think we’re learning the benefits of pets as office mates too.

This past week, the U.S. Post Office released their Dogs at Work stamps featuring four different canines guiding, comforting, tracking, and searching for people. These stamps reflect our enduring relationship with dogs not just as pets, but as working companions. (Sets of four First Day Covers are also available for stamp collectors.)

Most people are familiar with working dogs, but not many have heard about cats in the workplace. Notice I didn’t say “working cats.” That’s because cats are employed to do a job; instead they bring a different prescense into the office that is calm and soothing.

In Sunday’s San Antonio Express News, I write about TR, the office cat at esd and associates, a creative firm in San Antonio, Texas. Many people don’t think cats have people skills, but they have subtle ways of winning over the hearts and minds of those people who might decide whether they stay or go. In this column, find out how TR won over the esd and associates creative director (hint: he is doing it in this photo) and earned a spot on the agency’s creative team.

Looking at TR, it’s clear to see the benefit of an office cat. Calm and laid back and often in the middle of a nap, cats provide a quick sense of calm for the senses. Whether you are watching them just hang out, stroking their chins, or listening to them purr, cats, who ironically have heart rates twice as fast as humans and dogs, are the purrfect prescription for helping us to slow down and just breath.

Here’s to office cats.

P.S. TR belongs to Felice Hunt, an account executive for esd and associates, who takes him home every evening so he is not left alone in the office. No one, not even a cat, should spend their life at the office.