The anticipation grew with every passing minute. I eagerly looked forward to this moment all week. College made me realize I couldn’t live without him, no matter how hard I tried to move on. It was especially hard on those lonely nights when I was left with no one to hold.

I opened the car door and there he sat, peering up at me with those deep brown eyes. His shaggy, black hair lay on his body in perfect waves. We embraced and he showered me with slobbery kisses. I was finally reunited with my best friend and companion — my dog, Jake.

Jake and I have never been separated for more than a week. Being apart from him for the past month was so strenuous on me. During the two glorious hours my dad visited me with Jake, my heart felt complete again. My love for my black lab is truly unconditional, and so is his. He wouldn’t care if I had a third eye or five legs.

Being a devoted animal lover and living on campus without a pet is not something that will get easier with time. In fact, I feel like it gets harder with each passing day. Human contact is nice, but nothing beats animal cuddles. I’ve even contemplated joining the squirrel feeding club just to have some form of animal contact. There’s also the equestrian team and other animal-related extracurriculars, but that’s not really my thing.

MSU allows students living in dorms to have fish of the non-piranha type. But there’s only so much you can do with a fish. Their life expectancy is also very touch and go.

I feel like MSU should have some outlet for people to spend time with animals. It has been scientifically proven that animals help to relieve stress, so students could definitely benefit from that.

Moving away from home is terrifying, particularly for people like myself who actually enjoy spending Friday nights at home. Imagine being able to go to college with a built-in friend, a pet to make you feel comfortable. Even if I brought my whole house into my dorm, it wouldn’t be the same without my cats and dogs.

Rachel Brauer is an intern at The State News. Reach her at rbrauer@statenews.com.