Reading to Katie at the South Pas Library

It's said that in a room of 30 people the odds are even that two people will have the same birthdate. By that statistical reckoning, the chances must be pretty good that there were at least a couple of folks named Katie at the South Pasadena Public Library Monday afternoon.

Only one of them was a Golden Retriever, however—and a pretty pampered one at that. A group of kids had signed up in the library's Children's section—to read to the pooch. 

Katie was brought in by her owner, Barbara Bunting, under the Pasadena Humane Society Companion Animal Program, which extends to various libraries, including the one in South Pas. The idea behind the program is to make reading more fun for children and build their confidence in reading aloud.

Making children aware that animals, too, experience a range of emotions, just as humans do, and that all animals should be treated with respect and kindness, is another of the program's goals.

"It's amazing—the kids really love to read to Katie," said Bunting, who has been bringing the dog to the South Pas Library for the past three years. (Prior to that, Bunting brought another of her retrievers, Mattie, to the program for a total of seven years.)

How does Katie take to all the attention? "She enjoys it," said Bunting. "She likes the kids and sometimes it looks like she's listening."