AIBU to think school staff should make care provision for their dogs?

[LoveTheirDogs]

Our headteacher and business manager have both got dogs in the last six months. Now they're bringing those dogs into school. They're saying that the dogs are 'school dogs' which seems to mean that they're dogs that mostly hang around in school. They've also scheduled a number of 'enrichment activities' for the kids so that they can 'learn how to interact with different species' ie their dogs. AIBU to think this is taking the piss and they should just make provision for their dogs same as any other working person rather than having the whole school have to go to these (non-accredited) 'courses' that clearly cost a fortune and are only being put on so that BM and HT can tick a box that says everything is ok with them bringing their pets to work?

You make it sound like they got these dogs and suddenly remembered that they worked and so came up with this plan on the fly?! This seems highly unlikely - surely their plan was that the dogs would come into school from the point of adopting them.

I still remember dm getting really angry in the early 80s when the headteacher got a 'school dog' who peed all over the newly carpeted corridor. The children had been warned that any muddy shoes or damage to the carpet by them would not be tolerated.
I wouldn't be a fan.

Well I dunno, we've just been told that the enrichment happens on a certain day's assembly. I guess people can still remove their children same as other assemblies? It's more the general vibe that I don't like though bh.

They have dogs at my DD's university and it's so beneficial for the students, and at her boarding school there was a house dog they took turns (argued) over walking, if they felt under the weather and stayed in their room during lesson times they dog would keep them company.

Pets as therapy is well established

@LoveTheirDogs

So far it seems to be just for the business manager and the head. They're quite pally.

Quelle surprise.

Unless the dogs are specifically trained as therapy pets and the enrichments activities are evidence based with clear links to the curriculum they're taking piss.

@LoveTheirDogs

Well I dunno, we've just been told that the enrichment happens on a certain day's assembly. I guess people can still remove their children same as other assemblies? It's more the general vibe that I don't like though bh.

You don’t like animals. That’s fine, you don’t have to. What’s really sad is that you’re trying to impose that on your children.

For those saying "what about those with fears / allergies / asthma?" and "there's no such thing as a child friendly dog" - you'd have to deal with it somehow if a child or teacher had an assistance dog just as much as if it's a regular pet. Guide dogs aren't robots, nor are they hypoallergenic.

If you can handle a guide dog in school, you can handle a non-working one. Adjustments would have to be made.

Yeah it would be much better for them if we could all just kumbayah and pretend that having pets is notweird, that owning an animal for your own entertainment is a-ok and legit, and that who gets to take their pets into their workplace is not a decision based on hierarchy. Which seems to be how things are, which seems to suit you, so good for you.

I’m sure that an awful lot of children who are apparently afraid of dogs would be less so if their parents weren’t so hysterical over dogs. The hysteria has increased over the years to the extent I think that children are being conditioned into a fear of dogs.

if the dog is well trained and socialised then I see absolutely no issue with it being on school grounds. So what if this is the head’s dog? As long as it’s trained…

There is a lot of evidence that relationships with animals is hugely beneficial to children.

From my own perspective, I have a guide dog. Way back when my DS was little I used to volunteer in his class once a week,and naturally the dog came with me. He didn’t get in the way, didn’t approach the children, but they were allowed to approach him as long as they asked.

After I’d been going in a couple of weeks one of the mum’s approached me and said that her ds had been really scared of dogs before, but since my dog had been coming in he seemed so much happier to be near them,. I used to go into the supermarket and hear this little voice approach round the shelf saying “hello dog’s name>, hello Mrs alternative.” clearly I was the afterthought. and I think that’s fine.

I also used to go in and listen to the children read once a day, and many of the children who were too unconfident to read at first used to read to the dog instead of to me. This helped hugely to build their confidence.

As long as no-one is forcing the dog on the children i.e. forcing them to stroke it, there really shouldn’t be an issue.

And for people saying that children might be afraid of being in a room with a dog, they really do need to get used to it, because the numbers of support dogs is on the increase,even buddy dogs which are given to school aged children and who are often allowed into school with them.

The dogs must be well behaved and well controlled, but as long as they are I don’t see why anyone should object.

YANBU. I took my DD out of her first pre-school for this very reason. I'm more than happy to admit that I don't like dogs, and I certainly don't want a random one around my three year old when I'm not there.

I voted YANBU because your OP is persuasive and I was with you in righteous ire. But now I’ve thought about it, it’s a lovely idea. My DD would love it, and people with irrational fears should be helped to face with them.

My biggest concern would be that these are rescue animals, which means you don't know their background, how they've been treated in the past, whether they are likely to snap.

The idea of a properly trained therapy dog in school sounds amazing. Rescue dogs from Romania don't sound like they fit that bill.

Our secondary has a school therapy dog but it was purchased as such and has been trained for this role. It’s a huge school, ddog always on a lead on the site and dc can easily avoid him. Proven to be hugely beneficial.

Our primary has just announced the head is bringing his dog in - this links with his wife returning to work as dc are now in childcare. I’m very dubious re this but they have a risk assessment and parents had to complete a form giving permission etc so dc who are scared or have allergies can avoid.

Pets are known to be beneficial but I’m not sure how beneficial sporadically meeting a dog twice a term is. Secondary has a much clearer, planned approach.

My kids would love this. And it would help kids with fears of dogs imo.

Nope. Would not be okay with this.

DD had a therapy dog come in to school which was great. We were given info in advance, had to agree what level of contact we were happy with between our child and the dog and it was a positive experience for her after a number of negative dog experiences.

Not comfortable with her being near a rescue with an unknown history without very close supervision. Dogs can cause far more damage than a gerbil, hamster, rabbit etc so it is a completely different situation.

You don’t like animals. That’s fine, you don’t have to. What’s really sad is that you’re trying to impose that on your children

Whether the op likes animals or not is irrelevant. The only relevant things is the safety and welfare of the children in the school....hence why she needs to see the risk assessment.

Ds's school has a therapy dog. Ds has never seen the dog as he doesn't have that kind of therapy. I've seen the dog once at school open evening. I think it's fine if it's organised properly but I wouldn't think it was ok for the teachers to just being in their own pets into school. It's difficult to tell which situation OP is talking about though.

Lots of schools have dogs - some have even acquired them without the involvement of senior leadership in their care. If there were dog allergic people around, then they wouldn't be there.

@LoveTheirDogs

Well I dunno, we've just been told that the enrichment happens on a certain day's assembly. I guess people can still remove their children same as other assemblies? It's more the general vibe that I don't like though bh.

Yes exactly.

So some of the children will likely benefit from it.

If you don't want your child to come into contact with the dog, pull them out of the assembly but why try to spoil it for others?

And why the insistence it's all because 2 teachers can't/won't make pet care provisions at home?

For those saying "what about those with fears / allergies / asthma?" and "there's no such thing as a child friendly dog" - you'd have to deal with it somehow if a child or teacher had an assistance dog just as much as if it's a regular pet. Guide dogs aren't robots, nor are they hypoallergenic. my carpet is evidence of that, given the amount of black and golden hair on it (I have a black lab who is working guide dog and a retired lab/retriever x).

I work for a dog charity and have dogs. Which I actually do take to work. After a huge risk assessment exercise 🙄

But this Head is a complete CF!!

Therapy dogs are wonderful and PPs have mentioned the benefits of bringing dogs into schools.

However it sounds like the school hasn't done a proper risk assessment, nor checked liability if the dog hurts someone. And what about other religions who are not keen on dogs or kids who are allergic. Hardly diverse is it?

It's attitudes like this that really annoy me.

Wonderful idea but more thought needs to be put into it. Not just to save the Head some money on doggy day care. This has really annoyed me!!

Like I said, my dd hates dogs. I'd be fine if the school gently introduced her to a very well trained proper therapy dog an a one off event. I'd not be happy for a rescue dog from abroad being a permanent fixture.

Actual school dogs are trained from near birth for the job. Then the handler goes and trains for several weeks with their matched dog before heading home. It’s an incredibly expensive and involved process that yields dogs who can handle the chaos of 100s of children who may not always follow every rule of dog safety to perfection. They are not random dogs that happen to hang out at school. That is a recipe for disaster.

My DD’s lower school had a school dog. It was financed by the parents association. The dog was very useful for her because while she refused human help for the problems she was having, she would happily accept time to cuddle with the dog and that would give them a chance to talk to her about her stress and help her with that without her even realizing.

I have an autistic child who is petrified of dogs. Another child who is fine with them, nothing to do with me. Some people have fears, like spiders or snakes, for some it is dogs. Phobias are not easy to get over and can cause significant distress.
The head brings her dog in as a school dog and roams free around the school. Therefore our nearest school isn't an option, so they go to the one in next town over despite not being nearly as practical.

Shouldn't be allowed IMO.

Does sound like a piss take in this particular instance