Busy B's get Busy!

Fiona and her lovely Education Dog Jake recently visited Busy B's childcare in Loughshinny, Co. Dublin.  Fiona and Jake visited two groups of pre-school aged children who picked from flashcards all the different items that dogs need to be healthy and happy - they learned that dogs need a lead and collar, but definitely not chocolate!

 

 

 

 

The children also learned the WALT method of how to safely pet a dog with the owner's permission:

 

W - Walk slowly up to the dog's owner.

A - Ask if you can pet the dog.

L - Let the dog sniff your closed fist.

T - Touch the dog where the owner says it is ok to pet him/her.

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to Brenda and all the staff and children at Busy B's for a lovely visit.  Don't forget, you can see if you can avail of a FREE Dogs Trust Educational Workshop by contacting education@dogstrust.ie .

 

 







Tea and Tales

 

Last Wednesday  23rd April the Dogs Trust Education Team held their very first 'Tea and Tales' event at the Dogs Trust Rehoming Centre in Finglas.  This family-friendly event was attended by 41 parents and children, all eager to hear from some canine professionals about how they came to be working with dogs.  We heard from fantastic speakers, from dog groomers to trainers and even a doggy daycare owner!  Attendees were also treated to a behind the scenes tour of our Rehoming Centre and learned how to safely 'meet and greet' Education dogs Jake, Sadhbh, Cónán and Béibhinn.  And, of course, there was plenty of tea and cake on offer as well as goody bags galore!

 

 

 

On hand from the Dogs Trust to speak about their jobs were Ali the Training and Behaviour Advisor, Graham the Post Adoption Supervisor, Kim the Canine Carer, Sam the Volunteer and Fiona, Deirdre and Aoife the Education Officers.

 

The Education Team would also like to thank the following Canine Professionals for volunteering their time to tell us all about their fantastic jobs working hands-on with dogs every day and for promoting Responsible Dog Ownership:

• Fiona Dunphy, dog groomer: https://www.facebook.com/FionaDunphyDogGrooming
• Louise Jones, dog trainer: http://www.pawsitivedogtraining.ie/
• Suzi Walsh, dog daycare owner: http://www.positivedogtrainingdublin.com/
• Jacinta Codd, veterinary nurse: http://anicare.ie/
• Donal Moroney, dog warden: https://www.facebook.com/ashtondogpound



We're sure some younger members of the audience came away from the event eager to pursue a career working with dogs.  In the meantime we're sure they will continue to give their own dogs the very best of care.

 

A huge thank you to everyone who spoke and attended our first Tea and Tales event; we're already looking forward to the next one!  You can keep up to date on future events by following Dogs Trust on Twitter and Facebook:

 

• https://www.facebook.com/dogstrustireland
• https://twitter.com/DogsTrust_IE



Dog Safety at Easter

Hmmm, Béibhinn the Education Dog wonders if she should chow down on a delicious Easter egg.  Don't do it Béibhinn!  While a sweet treat can be enjoyed every once and a while by us humans, chocolate is extremely dangerous for dogs. Here's why ...

 

• Many people are unaware that chocolate is poisonous to dogs.
• Chocolate makes dogs extremely sick and may even kill them.
• Chocolate contains a chemical called theobromine which is safe for humans but not safe for dogs.
• The darker the chocolate, the more poisonous it is for you doggy pal.
• As a rough guide, Dogs Trust estimates that 50g of plain chocolate could be enough to kill a small dog, such as a Yorkshire Terrier, while just 400g could be enough to kill an average size dog.

 So that everyone can have an egg-cellent Easter, remember these rules to keep your dog safe:

 

• Keep your chocolate in a safe place so your dog can't get to it.

• NEVER feed your dog chocolate meant for humans.

• If your Easter egg is missing and you think your dog may have stolen it, contact your vet straight away.

• Look out for any of the following symptoms; vomiting with blood, a sore tummy, extreme thirst, excitability, drooling, rapid heart rate and in severe cases, fits.

• If your dog is displaying any of these signs then take him immediately to your vet.

• The sooner your dog gets to a vet, the greater the chance of recovery from chocolate poisoning.

• If you want to treat your dog this Easter, stick to natural doggy snacks that are kinder to your canine.

 

The Education Team would like to wish everybody a Yappy Easter! xxx

Education Team - Dogs and Blogs



Did you know that the schools we visit often write about our workshops on their school blogs and websites?  The Education Team would like to thank all of the schools and students who have taken the time to write and share their experiences of a visit from Dogs Trust on the world wide web!  Here is just a selection of some of our favourite school websites: 
 
 
Fiona and Jake - Dublin and Eastern Education Team:
 

• http://stops.scoilnet.ie/blog/?p=1922
• http://ashbourneetns.ie/?m=201402
• http://maryhelpofchristians.ie/node/182

Deirdre, Sadhbh and Cónán - South East Education Team:

• http://duallans.scoilnet.ie/blog/?s=dogs+trust
• http://tinrylandns.ie/school-news/index.php/ms-meaney/dogs-trust-visit
• http://www.gaelscoilau.ie/ocaidi/13-14/dogs.htm

Aoife and Brave - South West Munster Education Team:

• http://desertsergesns.com/2013/11/25/the-dogs-trust/
• http://stpatricksgirls.net/?p=191
• http://www.clondulanens.org/?p=508

PS:  To find out if your school or organisation could have a FREE visit from a Dogs Trust Education Team, please contact education@dogstrust.ie.

A report from Davy in 3rd Class

 

South West Education Officer Aoife and her Education Dog Brave paid a lovely visit to Scoil Eoin Naofa in Cork. A little boy from 3rd class called Davy came to Aoife at the end of the day to show her a report he had written after the workshop. Both his teacher and Aoife were so impressed with his beautiful handwriting and how carefully he had written up his report. Davy had remembered all the key Safety messages Aoife and Brave had taught the pupils during her visit.   Aoife made it clear that we must never approach a dog who is on his own.  However, when we are meeting a dog who is with his owner, we should use the WALT method: Walk slowly over to the owner, Ask the Owner, Let the dog sniff you, Touch the dog gently.

 

A huge thank you to Davy for letting us share his brilliant report on the blog and to all the pupils and staff at Scoil Eoin Naofa who were so kind and welcoming to Aoife and Brave.

Education Dogs Strike A Pose!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

The Education Dogs recently had their very own ‘photoshoot’ at Dogs Trust. The results will be used on our brand new Education stand for when the Education Team attends events around Ireland and in our new school flyers promoting our FREE Educational Workshops in primary schools. Whoever said you should never work with animals has obviously never worked with our professional canines! Jake, Sadhbh, Cónán and Béibhinn were ready for their close-ups – with the help of a few tasty hotdogs of course! These photographs were taken by our talented South West Education Officer, Aoife de Búrca.

 

A visit to Scoil Chroí Íosa in Blarney, Co. Cork

This week South West Education Officer Aoife and her dog Brave went to visit a fantastic school called Scoil Chroí Íosa in the lovely village of Blarney in Cork. The students and staff were so kind and welcoming and Aoife and Brave really enjoyed their time in the school.

Brave was so happy in the school he didn't want to leave! This was probably because all the children were really gentle and made him feel really at home, helping to make sure he had fresh water and toys to play with.  Aoife's visit focused on Safety around dogs we know and dogs we don't know, and the children learned lots of new information about our furry friends.

 

 

 

 

Thanks so much to Scoil Chroí Íosa for sharing these photos from the school blog.  You can read their article about the visit here:

 

http://www.scins.ie/index.php/school-blog.html