We have awarded a grant of $8,700 to Tails Of The Forgotten Paws (TOTFP) for the development and support of their new Canine Centre of Excellence program.
As an animal welfare organisation, TOTFP believe education and affordable support for their community of dog lovers is the key to significantly improving the current crisis of unwanted pets across Australia.
TOTFP are invested in promoting better and healthier human-animal relationships, including changing people’s mindset before they give up on their pet or use the wrong approach, or perhaps even before they bring home a dog. This is a part of the organisation's overall mission and forms a big part of their long term goals.
In the last couple of years there has been a greater pressure on accessibility and affordability of all aspects of pet ownership; vet care, food costs, and also training and behavioural care. This project is intended to provide education and support to dog owners and adopters that is ethical, accredited, easily accessible and most importantly, affordable.
This year, TOTFP executed a Pilot of this project covering 3 topics: Pet First Aid, Understanding Separation Anxiety in Dogs, and Understanding Dog Body Language. These were led by certified a force free ethical behaviourist and a veterinarian.
Through this project TOTFP want to be able to offer affordable monthly community education classes on more topics around responsible dog ownership and their welfare, whilst also promoting an “adopt don’t shop” mindset.
Other topics they have planned are: how to pick the right dog, practical guide to adopting, why desexing is important, training and living with a rescue dog, how to understand dog body language / safe handling especially around young kids, how to tackle common behavioural challenges such as separation anxiety, understanding reactivity, what can you do during a medical emergency, and snake awareness. These classes will be led by certified experts in their field.
Those who adopt a dog through the TOTFP charity will also receive free access to these classes. This is to encourage adopters to never stop learning, to always seek to understand, and importantly so they too can be the biggest advocate in the community for their adopted dog.
TOTFP believe being proactive in offering affordable and easily accessible interactive community education classes is key in driving down the rate of dogs being abandoned, rehomed or euthanised due to overcrowded pounds. This program is projected to help around 160 dogs and these programs will play an important role in lifting the animal welfare standard in our community in general.
TOTFP have a long term vision of this being endorsed by local councils so we can target areas with high number of abandoned pets.
If you want to find out more about Tails Of The Forgotten Paws or this program head over to - https://bit.ly/46WJLt4
