THUNDER BAY — Junna is three years old in June and wants a dog at home. She said she loves dogs because she is “brave.”
Junna was among nearly ten babies and toddlers participating in a puppy perks storytime at the Mary J.L. Black Public Library on Thursday morning.
Her favourite dog was the “poodle.” She also said she liked to play doctor and was a vet.
“I had to be a doggy doctor,” said Junna.
Junna said she had fun playing with the doggies.
The puppy perks program is only one of PAWsitively Social Canine Adventures’ services.
Tammy Williams, the owner of PAWsitively Social Canine Adventures, said she is really proud of it.
“I think it really helps get puppies off to their best start and I think incorporating it with children...,” said Williams.
“We go to senior centres (and) we go to schools because puppies need to know that there are different kinds of people out there and different kinds of environments and different kinds of things that they need to be exposed to so that they can be a little bit less scared of them when they get older.”
She said it’s just a really important service to offer for puppies and puppy owners.
“They can’t always get their dogs out and about when they’re little to get their puppies out to experience new things, new adventures, new environments (and) new people,” said Williams.
Williams added that it’s definitely a service that she is happy to provide for them, but on the other side, she does like to educate children on how to interact with dogs.
“I think it’s really important that they know (to) understand body language and they know how they should be meeting dogs,” said Williams.
“Children and dogs don’t understand the same language. And sometimes puppies don’t understand that children are just really really excited and sometimes children don’t understand that puppies and dogs are really really excited. So it’s important for them to know how to interact safely with each other,” she added.
Williams explained that one of the biggest rules around dogs and children is that they should not be left alone and should always be supervised.
“Children should learn not to approach dogs that are not their own. Even their own dogs at home. They shouldn’t be approaching their dog if their dog doesn’t seem to want to be approached,” said Williams.
“So it’s important that they understand that they should wait for a dog to approach, they should only pet with one hand because two hands can be a little overwhelming (and) they should also only pet when the dog does seem to want to be petted on their chest or on their side to ensure that they’re not reaching over their heads.”
She said children should also never try to pick up puppies or dogs, even the small ones, because it’s not safe for them.
“You should try to remain calm and not get upset or excited if a dog is getting too excited for you. I always tell children they should stop, stand still and be as boring as possible until an adult can come help them,” said Williams.
The puppy perks program will return at the Mary J.L. Black Public Library on June 5.
