Wolverines are usually the animal associated with Wakeland High School, but now guinea pigs have entered the mix. The Wakeland library recently adopted a guinea pig named Lennie. 

“It was kind of an impulse decision. I’ve always wanted a library pet. My friend is a librarian at Liberty, and she has a snake, but I can’t do that. I wanted a dog or a cat, something that would sit and let people pet it, but because of allergies that was always a no. So my daughter suggested a guinea pig,” Ms. Powell, librarian at Wakeland said.

Once Powell received permission from Dr. Edge, and she immediately went out and got Lennie.

Lennie is great for Wakeland’s students. He can act as an emotional support animal, and students are allowed to pet and hold Lennie.

“Maybe not all the time, like power lunch when there (are) a lot of people, he gets really freaked out, but if there’s not a lot of people in here, absolutely students can touch him,” Powell said.

Having a pet in the library can help the emotional and mental growth of students. They can provide a sense of peace, and have been known to help calm students.

“I’ve had kids already come in and say ‘I need five minutes with Lennie,’ and they just pick him up and hold him, then go back to class,” Powell said.

“Lennie is a great addition to Wakeland. He’s really cute and he brings a lot of calm energy to the library,” junior Amber Malorzo said. 

Addison Besel is a sophomore at Wakeland. She’s only seen Lennie a few different times when she went to the library with her class.

“I think it’s a really good idea, and it can bring joy to people. Having a guinea pig could give students a break, and if they ever feel stressed out, they can visit the guinea pig,” Besel said.

Lennie will be at Wakeland for the foreseeable future. He will stay, “Until they kick him out I guess, or he graduates,” Powell said. Lennie also has an Instagram account. You can find him at lennie_the_whs_guinea.