Lifestyle Loves: Puppy yoga

I’m an unashamed dog lover. For years I wanted my parents to buy me a puppy, I played Nintendogs until I was probably about 15, and I follow multiple dog accounts on social media. Since coming to university, the one thing I missed the most is my dog, so when I saw that there were puppy yoga classes in Manchester, I knew I had to go!

After following @pawyoga_mcr for several weeks and waiting for their new classes to start, I finally secured a spot in mid-October to take part in a yoga class with golden retriever puppies. You can imagine my excitement.

My class took place in the city centre at Yoga Soul, which was about five minutes away from Piccadilly Gardens. We waited outside before taking our shoes off and then we were introduced to the puppies. Of course, they were super cute and cuddly which made it very hard to resist playing with them throughout the yoga session. The classes are structured so that there is half an hour of yoga and half an hour of pure puppy cuddles.

The staff were lovely and offered to take photos throughout. I’m not much of a yogi myself but the class was fun, and it felt very zen despite the puppies running around everywhere! There was no pressure to do anything beyond your ability and you were more than encouraged to stroke the puppies if they came over to you.

It wasn’t a particularly advanced class as every move had to be done at floor level for the safety of the puppies, so if you’re an avid yogi looking to learn new skills then this probably isn’t for you. But if like me, you just want a bit of a stretch, good vibes, and a serotonin boost then this is perfect.

Everyone was very friendly, and it was great to meet new people whilst you sit with puppies on your lap listening to calming music. Needless to say, the puppies were incredibly sweet, and it was an absolute delight to spend time with them.

I personally can’t think of a better way to spend a Saturday afternoon than to be surrounded by dogs and working the mind and the body. I will definitely be going back to one of Paw Yoga’s classes again.