The school is getting a school dog

[Worriedaboutthedoggy]

The school had sent out a newsletter today that they are getting a school dog. The letter has all the positives mentioned - they are getting it from a reputable breeder and good bloodlines, it is a hypoallergenic breed (labradoodle), it will be staying in a family environment when off duty (presumably with a member of staff), it will teach the children about the importance of caring for someone - but I still am feeling a bit weird about it, can't put my finger on why exactly.

I am not sure about the impact on the dog - won't it be stressed by the usual playground ruckus? What if it turns out to be wrong temperament?

I am also ashamed to admit that one aspect that concerns me is financial. The average lifetime cost of keeping a dog in the UK (according to google) is around £18K, and I can't help feeling that there are better ways to spend these money (the school is currently fundraising for quite basic things).

Please do tell me I am BU and a total killjoy, and please do tell me your positive stories.

whyayepetal the school would aware if such a severe allergy. Given it's a rural school and OP says many of the families have dogs.

Its likely children carry dog hair into school and the dog should be kept in limited areas to avoid this.

P.S. random dogs cannot 'effectively work as therapeutic/educational pets'. Dogs who do this job have been trained and assessed for years and they are overseen by experienced handlers.

My kid's school has a library dog. She's gorgeous and I think she is a labradoodle. Ive visited her many times and she is extremely calm and gentle. The kids (and this is secondary school) are amazing with her- they are all very respectful and gentle with her and they all adore her. It has increased the time my son spends in the library! and has been an all round positive and enhancing experience. I did ask one of the librarians what happens if she gets stressed and they said she has her own space she can retreat to if she needs a break but she rarely does- she's very social and loves meeting new people. She gets lots of positive attention and fuss and seems really happy.

I think its a great idea!

One of my kids is terrified of dogs for various reasons. They have a dog at their secondary school but not full time and confined to student support (which she doesn't use) but u have real concerns that if she needed student support it would prevent her going.

If she had been in primary and a dog had been announced she probably would have refused to go to school. She is a tiny bit less scared now!

My dd’s school has a dog .
He’s lovely and the kids adore him.
He’s not always doing things around the kids and they used to take him out in the playground for very short amounts of time to get him used to the noise /activity .
When he has down time he sleeps in the head teachers office .

Dog ownership is very bad for the environment. We are in a climate emergency - no one should be buying dogs except for service dogs. Dogs are a nice luxury but one we should do without for the sake of the planet.

Having children is the biggest threat to the planet...so when we cull the dogs maybe the kids should go too....

Add to that maybe return to survival of the fittest....

for those who won't see the sarcasm...

if ita a trained service dog, the temperament is right. Or it wouldnt be a trained service dog

Where in the OP does it even say that the dog will even arrive as an adult, fully trained and registered therapy dog?

I suspect it'll arrive as a puppy because imo, some CF teacher just wanted a dog and to bring it to work...

If the school aren't even capable of researching dog allergy enough to understand that there is no such thing as a hypoallergenic dog because a lot of allergic people are allergic to proteins in the saliva and dander not the hair, not capable of researching enough to learn what constitutes a lesser allergenic dog (not a labradoodle!) and aren't even capable of researching the general temperament of a breed, or crossbreed (ask most people their experience of a labradoodle and they'll tell you they are bonkers) do you really think they have the skill involved to accurately assess the temperament of both parents and pick out the puppy with the correct mix of drives?
Not to mention train it correctly and correctly read it's body language?
Honestly?

Unless you think they are going to buy an actual trained therapy dog?
They cost thousands of pounds.

Why don't they get an established therapy dog which has already been trained to deal with crowds etc. Getting a puppy will be a surprise in terms of temperament and routine.

Our secondary school has a dog , looked after by one of the receptionists. He writes on the school website and FB pages telling us when there are school inset days or return from school holidays . He is loved by one and all and as he isn't a large bouncy dogs , the kids adore him . I believe he is used by teachers to comfort kids who are upset or as a reward for good behaviour. IMHO, one of the best things the school has done .

I can understand your uncomfortable feelings about this and as a dog owner myself I would have been asking many questions and been rather sceptical had I not seen 1st hand how much it can help.

My eldest ds was bullied very badly in yr7 we involved the school, who helped tremendously, and thankfully I have a happy boy today doing well in yr9. One of the coping strategies they had was a time out to see the therapy dog. It’s not widely known that the school have this resource otherwise there would be an endless line of kids and adults at the door. For those children who want it and parents who are happy with them being around the dog a child can have a break from what pressures they are facing. For my ds it meant having 20 mins or so sitting (supervised) with the dog either gently stroking, reading to it and just taking those precious moments to himself to “re set”. The school often found that the children would talk more openly about what was happening to them while with the dog. My ds is very close to our own dog and for him it felt like safety and home in place he viewed as a battlefield in a war zone.
It is not going to work for all but it was very well run with both the students and dogs mental health forefront. The school do find that they have far more successes with children who are having a very hard time with the dog being there.

There is no such thing as a hypoallergenic dog. I am severely allergic to dogs. Very severely. If l didn’t have an inhaler and remained in a building where a dog is, l would die from an asthma attack. My eyes swell up and close, my skin swells and itches. Putting it in another room makes no difference. Allergen molecules hang around for about 6 months.
So l would say, have the school done risk assessments? Because they’d be forking our loads to the likes of me if they haven’t. And one in 3 have some sort of pet allergy.

What a dangerous, foolish, and ill thought out idea.

Hmmm. It’s nice to be concerned for the dog, and school finances, and you could always call up school and ask about it to allay your fears?

My son’s all boys school has taken well being and mental health increasingly seriously over the past 3 years or so (he is in year 11). They got a ‘well-being dog’ last year, and the reaction has been very positive.My son only gets to see it in passing, but I believe boys who are taking part in well being sessions get a more hands on experience (no pun intended).

As you know, state schools have no budget to speak of, and as others have said, it is the case hear that is the deputy head’s cockapoo. She was getting a dog for her family, and took it upon herself to train it/ have it ‘vetted’ for school dog duties.

It does not come in every day. We are not sure, but DS (16) thinks it stays in her office/ school office. We have a dog, but DS and his friends, who are all cool, laconic, ‘not much excites us out of our world weariness’ were endearingly excited when the dog started. They will race to the deputy head to ask if they can ‘hold the lead’ like 7 year olds - it’s been a real ice breaker for very traditional style boys school.

And from the dog’s point of view: I work at a school too, and my dog would love to come with me to work and hang out there - I really don’t think it is hardship for the dog...

I hope the dog at your child’s school has an equally positive impact. And if you are still concerned, you could always contact school for some more information.

Where in the OP does it even say that the dog will even arrive as an adult, fully trained and registered therapy dog?

OP hasnt even spoken to the school. So she has no clue.

It's highly unlikely the school is going to house a 8-12 week old puppy straight from the off. The OP said it had come from a reputable breeder. That doesnt mean it's a young puppy. It means they know the breeder. It could have been in training and be a a year old or older. Though I have issue with people breeding poodle crosses, but that's a different thread.

But thats not point. I said it will be a service dog, you said it doesnt work like that. I pointed that by being a service dog, all your point would have been addressed. Or its nor a service dog.

I work with a spaniel recluse and see tons of cockerpoos. Though dont own any. I am very aware of the hair issue. In the fact that they do shed, but if they have poodle coats it doesnt drop. It will drop unless the coat is entirely poodle. Again, this is am issue I have with the breeding of these dogs. Therapy dogs do cost thousands of pounds. That's not to say this dog hasnr been owned by the own and they have done the training at their own expense. Which is often cheaper than purchasing one.

Besides which, if the teacher has purchased it from their own money. Thats their business.

OP you don’t have any worries regarding your dc and the dog. Also, the school do not need you to micromanage this fairly standard situation. I’m not sure why you would ask for more details, the school can handle this.

I assume it is as a service/therapy dog lead through SENCO? labradoodles are considered to make excellent emotional support and therapy dogs which is why it was chosen.

It should have a home with a member of staff and it should be trained and slowly introduced

This isn’t a school pet by the way and for the PP who said about service dogs it is in effect one of those!

Why don't they get an established therapy dog which has already been trained to deal with crowds etc

They cost thousands of pounds for one thing.
There are already huge waiting things for them, there aren't a huge abundance of fully trained and registered therapy dogs for sale.

We've had a school dog at DDs primary school for about 3 years now.
They are specially trained and have to have the right temperament to be in the classroom. you can't just stick any old dog in there. When he was a very young dog time with the children was limited to stop him from getting tired and stressed and to make sure he got enough rest.
The dog lives with the deputy head and spends a lot of its school time in her office. It has been great for the children and time with the dog is used to reward good behaviour, comfort kids and children who struggle with reading can read to the dog to build their confidence up too.
The children love the dog and the dog always seems very happy and comfortable.

p.s. we had to give consent for DD to be introduced to the dog. They also asked us if she had any dog phobias which they would like them to help with.

I was in a house which has a labradoodle yesterday. The dog was in another room and I was still sneezing and my eyes streaming. I had to put up with living with dogs when I was a child and spent every night struggling to breathe as I developed asthma through living with two dogs. It was hell.

I've been around many supposedly hypoallergenic dogs and they all make me ill with no exception.

Im sick of having to apologise to dog owners that their pet is making me ill and no I don't want to stay over at their house as last time I did that I was taken away in an ambulance due to an asthma attack (very rare for me otherwise.)

My brother sulked last summer as I wouldn't let him bring his dog into the lodge we were staying in.

So no, I would not tolerate this happening at my child's school.

pps our dog is a cockapoo

My school has a wellbeing dog. She is owned and funded by a member of SLT, although I believe a local philanthropic charity has funded some school-related insurance and training. Local businesses are also queuing up to provide things and she is spoilt rotten by staff, parents and pupils with presents.

When she is not "working" she lives in the school office being spoilt rotten by the ladies in there. She has a rota of trained children who walk her on a regular basis. The year 6 children walk her around the field at playtime/lunchtime. Younger children walk with her and the caretaker to open and close the gates in the morning/afternoon. Plus she does all the usual wellbeing stuff during the day.

Parents can opt their children out of interacting with her but no one has, although we are aware of the children who are scared of dogs and are respectful of that. She is a hypoallergic breed (Shih Tzu) and we have had no problems with allergic people so far. (Not saying that we won't just that we haven't yet, and we are a very large school with many children and staff with asthma and traditional pet allergies)

There are hundreds of positive reasons for a school to have a dog, so I won't list them but it's worked really well for us, and it's an absolute success.

My brother's school used to have a school dog, no idea if they still do.

It wasn't just allowed to roam the school or be in the playground etc.

If the children kept their classroom clean, the dog might be allowed to visit as a treat (I assume children with a phobia would have been allowed to veto this or opt out, or perhaps there was some other plan)

It was generally kept to help children with SEN or who were having difficulties of some sort or another.

I doubt £18k over the lifetime of the dog is even noticeable in a school's budget!

YABU Brilliant idea. Teaches children about being kind to animals and all the other things people have mentioned. Let the school worry about practicalities.

My DC have always been to schools with resident dogs (though they have been dogs owned by headmasters/housemasters/other members of staff). It was always a plus point for me when choosing schools, especially as we can't have a dog due to me working.

OP hasnt even spoken to the school. So she has no clue
True.

It's highly unlikely the school is going to house a 8-12 week old puppy straight from the off
I wouldn't be so sure about that.
I wouldn't be at all surprised if it came in for visits as a puppy

The OP said it had come from a reputable breeder
Is there such a thing when it comes to labradoodles?
They are extensively puppy farmed.

That doesnt mean it's a young puppy. It means they know the breeder. It could have been in training and be a a year old or older
Possible but I highly doubt it.
My opinion is still very much that a teacher really wanted a dog to take to work and thought hmm, how do I get them to allow this?
I know!
I'll say it's a therapy dog..

Though I have issue with people breeding poodle crosses, but that's a different thread
Is it?
The main issues in breeding these trendy crosses - lower allergen when they often aren't, poor temperament are relevant here?

But thats not point. I said it will be a service dog, you said it doesnt work like that. I pointed that by being a service dog, all your point would have been addressed. Or its nor a service dog
The point I was trying to make is that in order to be successfully trained in therapy work the dog needs to have inherited a specific temperament.

How is someone who is incapable of even basic research going to be knowledgeable enough to assess a suitable dog for this line of work?

You can't necessarily rely on the breeder either given that breeding is unregulated in this country, HUGE numbers of unknowledgable people are breeding terrible examples of dogs.

Most dogs do not have the required temperament for therapy work.
Meltdowns for example, the vast majority of dogs will want to practise avoidance or get defensive.
Very few are happy to lie quietly.

I work with a spaniel recluse and see tons of cockerpoos. Though dont own any. I am very aware of the hair issue. In the fact that they do shed, but if they have poodle coats it doesnt drop. It will drop unless the coat is entirely poodle
This won't help many people with dog allergy.
They react to protein in the saliva, skin flakes etc.

Therapy dogs do cost thousands of pounds. That's not to say this dog hasnr been owned by the own and they have done the training at their own expense. Which is often cheaper than purchasing one
Most people can't even recognise basic dog body language let alone successfully train a dog in therapy work, which is a specicialised job requiring a specialised temperament with a high rate of drop out..