Learn with Dogs Trust!

At the very start of our blogging career the Education Team told you about our very own education website, learnwithdogs.ie.  In the last few weeks the Dogs Trust's team has been beavering away, creating a brand spanking new website for us, with even more ideas, curriculum linked plans, and fun games for you to play with Jimmy 'n' Chew! With a new site comes a new address  and you can find our shiny new page at www.learnwithdogstrust.ie .



There are some fantastic new Educate Together lesson plans that Dogs Trust helped create alongside Educate Together, Veterinary Ireland, and the ISPCA, which focus on caring for animals, and animal welfare. As well as these, there are lots of curriculum-linked classroom teaching resources, with, of course, a dog theme! Not to mention two new games, which Education Officer Dawn is slightly addicted to already!

 

On the new page you can also check out who your local Education Officer is, book workshops, and find out a little more about the work of the Education Team.

 



So whether you are a teacher in search of exciting classroom resources or a young person in search of fun activities and games all about our furry friends,  www.learnwithdogstrust.ie is the site for you!

Where in the world....?

Dogs Trust’s Education Officers spend a lot of time travelling in our own areas, delivering fun, free and interactive workshops to Primary aged children, and you may have seen your local Officer driving by in their Dogs Trust car (give a big wave if you do!). As well as having the great job of visiting schools to deliver Dogs Trust’s messages, and teach the next generation of dog owners all about Responsible Dog Ownership, the Education Officers also get to see a lot of Ireland. We drive through some really lovely parts of the country, and sometimes can’t believe our luck that this is part of our job! (Of course it helps when the weather is on our side).

 

So, we decided that we’d give you all a sneak peek into where we go, and the range of places that we get to see on our travels. Here are some places that the Education Team have had the pleasure of seeing en route to their workshops over the last month, we hope you agree that they are stunning! J

If you would like to book a FREE Dogs Trust Educational Workshop in your area, contact education@dogstrust.ie.

Lots of Learning with Longford Libraries

Earlier this month, our South Connaught and Clare Education Officer Dawn made a special trip to Longford to take part in joint workshops with Longford County Council. Dawn visited two libraries alongside County Vet Michael King and a whole menagerie of animals, to talk to local National School children about pet care and of course Responsible Dog Ownership. There was fantastic involvement from the children who attended, with Halloween being big on their list of concerns for their pets. We scooped some (fake!) poop, talked about how to be responsible dog owners, including walking our dogs twice a day, keeping them secure so that they don't roam and making sure they are microchipped and have a license. Everyone then got a chance to meet the range of animals there. What a fantastic day!

 




Students from Bunlahy NS, Longford with the menagerie of animals, and yes, that is a miniature horse in the library!

 
 



Persian Cat



 Silkie Hens

 












 Angora Rabbit



small horse



Dogs(x3) & 2 puppies!

 

 

The Education Team would like to say a big Thank You to Longford County Council for inviting them to take part in this terrific day.

 

If you would like to book a FREE Dogs Trust Educational Workshop in your area, contact education@dogstrust.ie.





Howloween- don't let your dog be a scaredy cat.

Halloween is almost upon us and with lots happening around the house and in your neighbourhood, this can be a particularly stressful time for your pets. So with that in mind, we've put together some tips to help keep give your precious pooches a peaceful holiday.

 

Trick or Treat:

 

Trick or Treating is one of the best things about Halloween, no matter if you're the one giving out the treats, or receiving them. However, whilst sweets and chocolate may be okay for us to eat (in moderation!), they can be seriously damaging to your dog. Chocolate (especially dark and baking chocolate) can cause chocolate poisoning in your dog, making a very poorly pup indeed. Sweets are no safer, as some use a type of sweetener which is known to be particularly bad for your dog, not to mention the risk of your not-so-canny canine eating the wrappers! If you think your dog might have eaten something they shouldn't have, contact your veterinarian straight away, especially if your dog is showing signs of being unwell.

Staying Indoors:
 

With lots of strange people wandering around, and lots of loud noises and unusual smells, it's especially important to keep your dogs indoors over Halloween. Trick or Treaters knocking on the door every few minutes can be very stressful for your pet and if you expect a lot of visitors to your home, give your dog their own space to relax in, away from the hustle and bustle of the front door.  To keep your dog feeling safe and happy, make sure he has a warm secure space with a comfortable bed and a few favourite toys and blankets, and of course make sure he or she has access to clean fresh water at all times. Turn the radio or TV on, and the volume up so that it hides the sounds of fireworks and your house callers.
 

Going Outside:

 

As well as spooky costumes, Halloween is often punctuated with fireworks and bangers, and with hearing far more sensitive than ours these loud bangs can often be terrifying for your canine.Try to get out for your evening walk before dark before the fireworks start, and if possible in an area where there won't be lots of witches and ghouls walking around!  Make sure you keep your dog on a lead at all times so that if they do get a fright they can't run off and lose their way. When you're letting your dog out for their bathroom break, stay with them in the garden and wait there until they're ready to come back in. A frightened dog can bolt pretty quickly, and can find escape routes your never knew existed.  Make sure that your dog's microchip details are up to date, and that they are wearing an ID tag, so that if for any reason they get lost, there's a much better chance of them being returned to you.

 

Decorations & Costumes:

 

Be careful of decorations such as costume accessories as some parts may easily become loose and your dog may choke or become tangled up. Lit candles (including those placed inside pumpkins) can easily harm your companion – so keep these items out of reach and do not leave your dog unattended

Do not force your dog to receive any unwanted attention, even from family members, as he may not recognise his owner if in costume and this may make him very uneasy

Never force your dog to wear a dog costume or put anything on him if it inhibits the use of his senses, i.e do not cover up his eyes, nose or ears.

 

 

Have a safe and happy Halloween for all!

 

It's raining Cats and Dogs!

 

Hi Guys! Jake here - Senior Education Dog if you want my full title. I wanted to take over the blog this week to talk to you about a subject close to my heart - WALKIES!

Now that the weather is getting colder and wetter, lots of doggie parents might think that their dog's might not want to go out walking but I'm here to tell you that's not true! I still need my walks two times a day, wind, rain or shine! My human, Fiona, knows that even if it's raining I still like to get out and about - who else is going to make sure that my neighbourhood is safe?

I thought that I'd show you all how easy it is to keep us dogs healthy and happy even when that water stuff is falling from the sky!
 

I do love my walks, whatever the weather, as it's always nice to go back indoors and warm up afterward. I would hate to be stuck outdoors with no shelter and blankets to keep me warm like some dogs, all that rain and cold air and no way to dry off and warm up? No thanks! If you two-legged folk do have outdoor dogs, it's not hard to make sure that they have somewhere warm and dry to shelter in, after all you wouldn't want to sleep out in the bad weather would you?

 

 

My new friend Meg loves being warm and cosy too, and Fiona (not MY Fiona!) makes sure that she gets a good spot by the fire, especially in the bad weather. Wouldn't it be great if all dogs could do this? We both agree that every dog deserves a safe place by the fire (or a nice warm radiator!).  Especially when it's stormy out, us dogs can get scared, run off and lose our bearings, so please keep us safe indoors, and keep an eye on us when we need to go outside. And keep us on a lead when we're out walking, so that if either of us get scared we won't run off and lose each other!
With Halloween coming up this is especially important, so check out the blog next week when the humans will be giving you some tips to keep us hounds safe and sound at this time of year.

Meg Makes the Grade!

As you may remember a few weeks back we introduced  you to our newest Education Officer, Fiona Ryan. Fiona is covering the South East area while the lovely Deirdre is on maternity leave. Last week Fiona's dog, Meg, happily sailed through her assessment to be an Education Dog, and so will soon start her training and begin to visit schools with Fiona to  help educate young people about Responsible Dog Ownership. Hurray for Meg!  

Meg practices her tail wags for the big test



However, as with all new employees, we had to check out Meg's C.V to make sure she had the right qualifications and experience for  the role. We thought you might enjoy having a look too!

We hope you agree with us that Meg will make a great addition to the Education Team, and that she looks lovely in her new uniform :) Fiona tells us that she's really looking forward to bringing Meg with her to her workshops, and that Meg can't wait either! Welcome to the team MEG!

Ready to Educate!

If you would like to book a workshop with Meg, accompanied by Fiona of course, you can contact Fiona on 0872965883 or at fiona.ryan@dogstrust.ie

If you would like to book a FREE Dogs Trust Educational Workshop in your area, contact education@dogstrust.ie.

Our Top Doggy Doodlers!

In Dogs Trust's most recent Dog Tales newsletter, we asked budding young artists to send us in drawings for our Doggy Doodles Competition. We had a fantastic response, and the Education Team loved seeing the pictures of your favourite dogs from our newsletter!

As this was a competition, we had the hard task of choosing the winners, and you didn't make it easy! However after much deliberation and discussion, our top three drawings are below. Well done to our winners!

 

 

 

FIRST PLACE:

 

 

The very talented Tamsin Fitzgerald, aged 10 from Portarlington in County Lois sent us in this lovely colourful picture of Buddah, our tough little puppy. We loved Buddah's waggy tail, and the bright orange letters! Well done Tamsin!

SECOND PLACE:

 

We just loved this pint sized picture from Emma Angell in Ballinasloe, Co. Galway. At 6 years old she's already a super artist! We especially love that there's a collar and tag on her dog, it's great to see some Responsible Dog Ownership!

THIRD PLACE:

 

Ben Curneen sent us this amazing drawing of Guy, complete with his Dogs Trust harness. Ben is aged 9 and lives in Dublin. We think that Ben is a very talented young artist, look at all the details he's included in his drawing!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Very well done to our top three Doggy Doodlers! Some lovely Dogs Trust's goodies are on their way to you!

As we had such a brilliant bunch of pictures to choose from, we decided to include a 'Highly Commended' category - so that we could a few more drawings with you all!

Khalessi by Niamh Culloty (9) from Tralee, Co. Kerry

 

Buddah by Lucy Sullivan (10) from Athy, Co. Kildare.Thanks for the update on your Dogs Trust dog Maisy!

 

Julius by Rebecca Brown  (9) from Bansha, Co. Tipperary

 

 

A huge well done and thank you to everyone who sent us in a Doggy Doodle!