Teacher’s dogs in classroom?

[Sunnyday14558]

Our son starts school in September. We had a meeting this evening with the new class teacher and fellow parents and the teacher dropped on that she has two sausage dogs. She said she brings one into class and is going to bring the second into class next week and ‘hopes he gets on with the kids’. All the fellow parents made a lot of ‘awww’ sounds but honestly I was a bit surprised.
is this normal in schools? She also said that if any parents were uncomfortable she’d try and work something out. I’m nervous around dogs but mostly because I have a four year old boy who doesn’t have experience being around them. I feel in an awkward situation where I don’t want to be ‘that’ parent if I say I’m not happy but equally, maybe it’s ok? So confused

I would not be having this at tall. My daughter had 2 dachys, one loved children but was actually a bit snappy and the other used to pee himself if he heard or saw a young child. This is not appropriate!

I'd complain unless it's a trained therapy dog and has high insurance against it biting a child.

This is such a daft idea! And I say that as a dog lover. My friend’s son is allergic to dogs and comes out in hives around them. Not to mention that’s it probably cruel for the dogs themselves!

I don't really have a strong opinion....I love dogs but I can understand why they shouldn't really be in the classroom. It's clearly so the teacher doesn't have to leave her dogs at home all day.

The thing I don't understand is how the teacher could concentrate. My dog would be whinging and fussing the whole time to go outside or for attention. My dog who's no longer with us would have been excitedly running about sticking his tongue in the children's ears and my dog who is still with us would be barking every time a child moved and he'd be quite frightened. I'd be worried about a sausage dog being trodden on and injured too.

Yes, I understand dynamic risk assessment. But you said "If no kids have allergies then no kids have allergies". That's not dynamic, and clearly you don't understand allergies. At all.

Not everyone develops allergies to everything they are exposed to. Two seconds thought would have told you that idea was nonsense. But if you have a predisposition, then you won't react on the first exposure to an allergen. It might take 2, or 10, or 50 exposures - and it usually gets worse each time.

Pet allergies are common. The dog sitting on their lap is not required to trigger it. Just being in the same room can be enough. The child can't choose whether to go into their own classroom.

This is not normal ime, I love dogs as does dd but I wouldn’t be happy with this tbh. Apart from anything else they would be a massive distraction and how is it fair on the dogs to be surrounded by kids all day.

You are correct- no dog is 100% hypoallergenic, but my dog is as good as it gets.

He’s also trained not to lick.

I'm surprised, no shocked a Doctor would impose a dog on patients who may have all types of conditions exacerbated by dog dander. It would never happen today & if it did I would report it to the GMC and remove my family from the practice.

My daughter moved to a new school at Easter and reports there is a "school dog" who is a large golden retriever and he sometimes comes into the classroom. She doesn't seem to know who he belongs to.

At her old school, there was a dog belonging to two staff members (one non teaching) who used to roam the place all day. Laughable really when parents had been told they weren't allowed to bring dogs on the school run because one child was scared of them.

'It's clearly so the teacher doesn't have to leave her dogs at home all day'

Isn't it weird that she's been accommodated though. I just can't imagine the thought processes and risk assessments that went along with the discussion of not only bringing dogs to work but also in an area with lots of very young children in a small area.

I wonder if the teacher is a right pita and everyone tiptoes round her.

But if they dont have allergies theg dont.

If they develop later THEN they have allergies.

But at that given point in time when someone has 0 allergies then they have 0 allergies

I dont have an allergy but you're saying me saying I dont have one is wrong as I could develop one..

So you're saying everyone has an allergy they just havent develop it yet??

So you're saying everyone has an allergy they just havent develop it yet??

No, that they don't know which children, if any, will develop allergies, so they have to risk assess and plan on the basis that some will.

But if they dont develop one they do not have one?! Right? Not sure how difficult it is to understand...

If I dont have money in my purse I am skint. Just because I might get paid next week doesnt mean I am not skint right now! Or am I not skint if I have no money by your logic as you dont live in the present?

Then in that case, the teacher is breaking all kinds of protocols!! (I work in a UK Primary School).

You CAN bring a dog into school BUT they have to be trained/assessed to be sure they’re suitable & they have to have a purpose, not just be there because the teacher in question hasn’t got any daycare arrangements in place for them! They are also usually based in a designated calm space, away from the children, with specific visits to the classrooms/corridors/outdoor spaces etc - NOT just pottering around the classroom all day, every day.

This teacher sounds as though she has no way of knowing if her dogs are safe to be around children & has made no attempt to check if any children have allergies etc. I love dogs but I would very much question this situation as a parent. It does not sound OK!

Dog allergies are extremely common. It’s highly likely there will be at least one in every class.

It can make you extremely unwell. I myself am a sufferer and it’s infuriating there are flipping dogs everywhere all the time these days.

The dog does not need to be in a classroom. I can see there might be some benefit to a genuine therapy dog visiting the school on occasion for children and parents who wish to participate. But again, it does not need to be in a classroom.

Not normal! Amazed that’s allowed, the dogs could bite the children or some may have allergies? My kids are terrified of dogs, that would be hell for them

I am a teacher and that is absolutely mad! I'd be complaining. She obviously just doesn't want to pay for a dog-sitter. What if there was a child in class with allergies?

I used to work in a school where the head would bring her dog in, keep it shut in her office during the day but take it for walks in the playground before the kids got in and let it run around including through the canteen on INSET days. So unhygienic 🤢 one time we found dog poo in a classroom! She was terrifying and no one could say anything.

Also sorry imagine trying to teach or a child being upset, pastoral issue, needing 1-1 support and there's a dog barking or jumping up...

Completely inappropriate and unprofressional for a teacher to bring their dog to work. Should we let the Tesco checkout girl bring her newborn on shift, so she can breastfeed whilst scanning items? Or your GP have her cat brushing against your leg whilst you describe your symptoms?

Leave your family at home. Work is work.

Any head teacher worth her salt would be putting a stop to this. The teacher should be told to make suitable arrangements for her dogs during her working hours. If she can't afford to pay for daycare, she needs to find a different job or accept that she is not at the right stage in her life to have dogs.

Of course they bloody know. Don't be daft. You can't fart in a primary school without everyone knowing within the hour.

OK, no need for the somewhat aggressive tone
What I was getting at was is this just some hare-brained idea the teacher's had, the head doesn't know but is sensible and will have a conniption when they find out.
EDITED typo

As a dog-owning teacher, this is bonkers! Small children are unpredictable with their movements and sounds - this sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. I’d definitely be raising it with school.
We have a trained therapy dog at the school I work at which is fine, as it is a choice to spend time with the dog, with parental consent, and the dog gets breaks away from everyone.

This seems mad. It’s entirely different to having a dog in the school office or headteachers office. Apart from the risk assessments and insurance it must be distracting, especially for 4 year olds who struggle to concentrate anyway. It just seems utterly inappropriate in a school. It also seems unfair on the dogs to be stuck in what will be a noisy classroom but be expected to not get excited. I can’t see how it can work at all. I’d ask to move to one of the other classes and if that fails I’d write to the Head and the governors

A quick Google gives you several suggestions as to where to go with this issue/ which dogs are allowed in school etc
A random dog in school does sound like a nono overall - there needs to be risk assessments, a highly trained dog, suitable for the age of the children it is around.
Keep pushing back against it and if needs be look at the complaints policy in school to take it further.