10 October, 2015

The BIG Bang!!!

The year has certainly flown by & we're rapidly approaching Firework season.


Rather than writing it all out again, I'll link to my previous blog post HERE  and just add that Diwali this year is Wednesday, November 11th....not too far away.

Many dogs find fireworks very stressful, but there's lots we can do to minimise their suffering.

Please have a read, a little preparation can save years of heartache & stress.

06 October, 2015

Woofability Assistance? Dogs

I seldom, if ever use this page to knock other organisations and it feels odd to do so. Especially when this particular group has charitable status!!
However, What has been seen cannot be unseen & I've seen this and am shocked, angered & frankly disgusted.

Assistance dogs, we've all seen them in various forms, Guide Dogs, Hearing Dogs, Dogs for the disabled. Out in public, wearing their harnesses, enriching and enabling the lives of their handlers.
Have you ever wondered about their training, how it's done, how long it takes, what's involved?
I have, I've trained one of my own as a therapy dog & visited the training centres of some major organisations. It takes a lot of knowledge, patience, time & understanding to train a dog and that's before it gets introduced to a possible handler.
Of course, this also takes money and as charities these organisations rely on public & corporate support.

I think we'd all agree that these charities do an outstanding job wouldn't we?

Well watch THIS  and then tell me how you feel (Comments welcome here or on our Facebook Page )

I'm really angered that Woofability Assistance Dogs are passing themselves off as an assistance dog charity.
Watching the programme, I was spotting mistake after mistake, from basic management issues to lack of knowledge about the most basic of training requirements.

A trained pet dog has better behaviour than the "trained" examples shown. Many dogs languishing in rescue centres receive better training. ( Dogs Trust have some amazing dogs & trainers at their centres)

I'm also really concerned over the welfare of dogs in their care and know well-meaning breeders donate much-loved pups to the scheme. Pups raised in homes, as part of the family, now living in stark kennels, with a lack of mental stimulation. A recipe for an unbalanced adult dog. Heartbreaking for the breeders, who I guess had imagined the pups being well cared for, in safe knowledgeable hands.

I really hope the publicity will get results, either by Woofability learning a lesson and employing trainers who actually know what they are doing, or by their charity status being removed.
My real concern though is for the welfare of those dogs and the safety of people who have one of the "trained" dogs in their homes.