How Does Your Garden Grow? Local Daisy Scouts Learn Important Tips On Animal Care and Safety

You can never begin teaching children too early to show kindness and have compassion for animals.  It is one of the core values to prevent future animal cruelty. According to the National PTA Congress, "Children trained to extend justice, kindness, and mercy to animals become more just, kind, and considerate in their relations to each other. Character training along these lines will result in men and women of broader sympathies; more humane, more lawabiding, in every respect more valuable citizens."

Recently Vic Abdy, Owner of The Madison Dog Resort and Spa and I met with a delightful group of local Daisy Scouts, kindergarten and first-graders with many questions on all things dog.  This happy bunch delighted in practicing "Being a Tree" a technique to use when a strange dog approaches, and learned first-hand how to politely greet a dog. The secret?  Ask the owner if the dog is friendly first and then let them sniff your hand. Krista, a four-year-old Wheaten Terrier with a penchant for putting children at ease with her canine dancing and tricks was delighted to have the children practice their skills with her.  By the end of the presentation, even the most shy scouts were eager to make her acquaintance as they learned about animal care and the important work of therapy dogs.  As families welcome a new dog into the home, they may want to set goals for the future including community service as a pet therapy team, bringing a little sunshine to others. The scouts and their parents were encouraged to adopt from local shelters or purchase only from reputable breeders (which are found by investigating the national AKC purebred clubs by breed). If your school or scout troop is interested in having a similar presentation please feel free to contact me. --Dorice Stancher, CPDT and Owner of Canines Can Do Positive Dog Training and a member of Pi Lambda Theta, the national teaching honor fraternity at caninescando@me.com