When these ballerinas rehearse, they have their dogs by their side

New York's American Ballet Theatre has a BYOD policy — Bring Your Own Dog.

The company, which is one of the ballet world's most respected, allows its dancers to bring their dogs along to class and rehearsals. Famed dog photographer Elias Friedman—otherwise known as The Dogist — captured the dogs of ABT for a special series and recently posted them on his Instagram and Facebook pages.

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"American Ballet Theatre has allowed dogs at least since the 1980s," Susie Taylor of ABT told Mashable in an email. "The Company used to take long tours, and they would let dancers bring their dogs with them so they wouldn’t have to pay for boarding. The current dog-friendly environment grew from there."

For Friedman, the project morphed into one of his most treasured.

"It was one of my favorite special series I've shot for The Dogist and tells an interesting story about how dogs can mesh with the lives of a professional dancer," Friedman told Mashable. "It was clear that dancers at this level dedicate a ton of their life to their craft and having a little (or big) friend to keep you company and be there for you in the ups and downs must really make a difference."

With the ability to bring their dogs to work, the dancers have built-in stress relief.

"The dancers love having the dogs around," Taylor said. "It’s a great stress reliever, especially since the ballet can be such an exhausting work environment. Plus it really adds to the family-like atmosphere here."

While the dogs tend to remain calm and relaxed during rehearsals, things occasionally get a bit wild.

"For the most part, the dogs will sit quietly in the studio when their owners are rehearsing," Taylor told us. "However, a few will spend the day in the offices of our Artistic Department, and I’m told once or twice a dog has waited for someone to open the office door and made a mad dash for the studio to find their owner."

For more photos from The Dogist at American Ballet Theatre, you can check out the full album here.

Image: Facebook: The Dogist