cheltonian pets
ShelterLife Animal Days
It’ssummerholiday time for schools, with children out of school now until September. Here at the CheltenhamAnimal Shelterwe take advantage of this by inviting children to join us for ourAnimalDays.
Animal Days, run by our Education Officer DebMorgan, take place during school holidays and are an opportunity for children aged 5 to 15 to spend time learning aboutwhat we do, howto be a responsible pet owner andmeet some of the animals here looking for homes. As Deb explained “education is a
key part of our role as an animal welfare charity, and these Animal Days are a great opportunity to engage young people and start their pet ownership off the rightway.We give themthe knowledge to look after their own pets, but also teach themhowto handle and approach other animals safely.” The day beginswith assisting the
kennel teamcleaning the small animals, a perfect opportunity to learn howto handle and care for rabbits and guinea pigs.Our enclosures allowthe children to get inwith the animals and it benefits us as the ‘fluffies’ get used to handling and becomemore sociable. Then it’s on to cats and an
opportunity tomeet and stroke themin their pens or our “catio” area where they can playwith toys and give the animals some exercise at the same time.Whenwe have kittens at the Shelterwe try and
60 AUGUST2017 THECHELTONIAN
introduce themto the children too, again it is beneficial to both and the kids love the cute little balls of fur and energy! After a breakwe do some craft
activities in our classroom. These take the formofmaking treats for small animals (decorated toilet rolls stuffedwith strawand nibbles for example) orweavingmats for the cats to playwith. There is usually some colouring and an animal quiz to enjoy aswell. Lastly the children get tomeet
some of our dogs.We advise howto approach a strange dog, ask for permission to stroke themand then howtomake friendswith the pooch. We talk aboutwhat to do if a strange dog comes to say hello, and it is fantastic to see some of the less
confident children growas they get to interactwith our dogs. Then it’s off for awalk around our paddock, armedwith treats and seeing ifwe can get the dogs to showus tricks! Animal Days are hugely popular
with the children, and the parents who can leave their little oneswith us for a fewhours, and so the sessions sell outwithin hours of being announced. If youwould like to be added to themailing list to get notification of the next set of dates, simply email Deb on
education@gawa.org.uk
CheltenhamAnimal Shelter, Gardner's Lane, Cheltenham Tel: 01242 523521
www.gawa.org.uk
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