Ah, and so comes February — colds, wind, fluffy snow and pink hearts. The season of love is upon us and it brings one of the most popular events on campus with it: Stuff-a-Husky. This year, Stuff-a-Husky was held on Feb. 11 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the MUB commons. This event draws students to stand in line for upwards of two hours just to get their hands on a free, soft little creature that they get to fill with fluff. The animals of choice for this year’s event included the customary husky, cows, bears, timberland wolves, moose, elephants, snow leopards and sloths. While some of the animal choices were old-time favorites, some were brand new, such as the elephants and the sloths. Huskies are always bought in the highest amount, considering the namesake of the event, the other animals are bought in fewer amounts, but they are all just as popular.
At 4:30 p.m., members of the MUB Arts and Leisure committee set to work taping off which end of the ramps would be the entry to the event and organizing the line into an orderly shape. There was a hustling scramble as students shuffled closer to the entry line and sat around, waiting for the event to begin. By the time the event began at 6 p.m., the line stretched from the beginning point in the middle of the MUB dining area up the stairs, through the second floor and was beginning to wind into the MUB Ballroom. Alexandra Costanzo, a third-year civil engineering major and the Committee Chair for the Arts and Leisure committee said that they ordered 504 animals this year and ran out of plushies in 40 minutes. She explained that this event has been happening for only four years now, which is incredible as nearly everyone on campus has heard of the event. They have been ordering increasing amounts of animals every year, but always have to turn away hopeful husky stuffers as supplies are limited. “We choose the animals off of the website within our committee, we have to have the animals picked by December because we place the order for the stuffed animals in January,” Costanzo explained. “We usually try to plan [the event] close to Valentine’s Day and it’s really a crowd pleaser. The news of the event always spreads quickly.”
Scott Sviland, a second-year scientific and technical communications major who worked Stuff-a-Husky for the first time this year said “Of course I would recommend this event, but you have to be sure to get here early because it’s only while supplies last. People began arriving an hour and a half to two hours early.” By 5 p.m., a good hour before the event starts, the MUB is already filled with prospective stuffers. It is important to get there early if you want to be able to snatch a new fuzzy companion. “My favorite part was definitely seeing people with their stuffed animals and being proud of [what they created].”
Stuff-a-Husky will likely only grow in popularity as the word about this event spreads, so if you hope to get your hands on a fuzzy friend next year, either for yourself or someone else, be prepared to show up early and camp out for an hour or two to make sure you get a good spot.
