School Dogs

School Dogs

The use of school dogs

At Dogs Trust, we understand the positive impact the human-dog bond can have, making each day happier and more complete. We want to offer information and insights that allow that bond to be achieved to its fullest potential, and for those wonderful benefits to be enjoyed by all.

The use of animals, particularly dogs, in an educational setting is a trend we have seen grow in popularity in the UK in recent years. We are frequently contacted by schools wishing to integrate a dog into their school environment and they come to us, as the UK’s leading canine welfare charity, for advice and guidance about how best to do this.

What we offer

We are pleased to offer The Dogs Trust guide to the use of school dogs, which you can download here. This comprehensive guide aims to facilitate the human-dog relationship within a school environment, so that all parties involved feel relaxed and safe. We have offered suggestions around many important factors for consideration and have also signposted and linked additional resources throughout the guide that we recommend exploring.

For schools who are considering getting a dog, or who already have one, we are also glad to offer our Safe Behaviour Around Dogs workshop for KS2 learners, and our Happy Dog Rules workshop for KS1. To make a booking, or for more information, please contact [email protected] 

If you do have a school dog, we now offer a KS2 workshop and whole school assembly that focusses on safe, kind ways to behave around a school dog so that the whole school community, four-legged members included, feel safe and relaxed.