Hundreds of kids up and down the UK are set to learn how to stay safe around dogs during the second annual ‘Be Dog Smart Week’.
Dogs Trust will be delivering dog safety workshops to children across the UK during Be Dog Smart awareness week (11- 17 June).
During the course of the week, the charity’s 26 Education and Community Officers will be visiting schools across the country reaching over 14,000 children to ensure they understand how to behave around dogs.
So far this year, Education and Community Officers have held workshops in 1,584 primary schools in the UK, reaching a total of 176,418 pupils.
In the South East in particular, Jo Cullum-Fernandez has help workshops in 29 primary schools reaching 4,692. And, in the West Midlands, Education Community Officer, Anthea Holloway has attended 50 schools and reached a total of 9,200 pupils.
A survey* of parents revealed that 30% of children in the South East come into contact with a dog every single day and 34% of these dogs belong to their family.
Around 41% of busy parents in the South East admitted that they have never taught their child to behave around dogs, but 9% have seen their child pulling a dogs tail with nearly 14% saying they have seen their child lying or sitting on a dog.
Be Dog Smart awareness week is just one of a number of initiatives that Dogs Trust is putting in place to help ensure dogs and children live harmoniously together.
Jo Cullum-Fernandez, Education and Community Officer for the South East, says: “Be Dog Smart Week is an important initiative that will help us continue to spread fundamental dog safety advice to hundreds of children and parents across the UK. Whilst being around dogs can have so many wonderful benefits for young people, the simple fact is that any dog can bite or snap if they are worried or hurt. Be Dog Smart Week allows us to reach even more children with our safety message.”
For more information on Be Dog Smart Week, visit www.bedogsmart.org.uk
* Survey conducted of 2,000 parents in February 2015 by One Poll on behalf of Dogs Trust.
