Dogs: Llandeilo Primary School uses pets to help pupils

How about a dog for a classmate at school?

This is what a primary school principal wants in every classroom.

Karen Towns has pioneered the use of dogs at Llandeilo Primary School in Carmarthenshire for the past decade to support the wellbeing of her pupils.

Her very own West Highland Terrier, Millie, is always on hand throughout the school day for children who need time out to regulate their emotions.

“We have a little joke I don’t hire anyone who doesn’t love dogs it’s an interview question,” she told BBC Wales Live.

“The teachers all wanted to have a dog themselves.

“The goal is for every class to have a dog at school because we found that a calming, cozy feeling at school really benefited education, student engagement in activities and a desire to come to school is.

“Participation has improved, behavior has improved.

“Staff even use the dogs to feel good – ‘I just had a terrible day, can I come and pet the dog?’. So there are many benefits.”

Petting Millie and even reading books to her has proven to be an effective way for students to express their feelings so they can focus on their studies.

Samia recently started school after her family moved to Llandeilo.

“On my first day of school I was excited but also nervous, but then I saw Rosie and she made me feel less lonely and happier,” she said.

“I think it’s great to have a dog here because if you’re a little sad you can pet it and it makes you feel better.”

Ms Towns said dogs have been particularly beneficial for students with additional needs, including a 10-year-old girl with autism who initially refused to come to school because she didn’t like dogs.

Mrs. Towns assured her parents it would work and gently introduced them to Millie.

“The dog became her life,” she said. “That was the only reason she came to school.”

dr Helen Lewis, Associate Professor of Education at Swansea University, has researched how dogs are used in schools, gathering responses from more than 1,000 teachers around the world.

“I think post Covid and lockdown the social aspect is really challenging for some people,” she said.

“And a lot of schools say the fact that the dog will be there today has made the kids more positive about coming in.”

All the dogs that come into Llandeilo Primary School have been trained to work in a stressful and noisy environment.

The charity Burns – By Your Side, run by the John Burns Foundation in Kidwelly, specializes in training dogs and their owners to help children learn to read.

“Ultimately, the dog needs to enjoy school and we would never put a dog in a school environment that didn’t want that,” said Katie Gardener, one of the trainers.

“All the schools that come on board with us are aware that the dogs have this 16 week training and we always tell the volunteers when they start that you are not allowed to become a volunteer at the end of the 16 weeks because we may have noticed that your dog is not suitable after all.”

Carmarthenshire Council has backed the initiative.

Glynog Davies, Cabinet Member for Education, said: “As well as Llandeilo Primary School, which has done a lot of positive work in this area with great success, there are other schools in the county that have introduced or are considering introducing therapy dogs into the school environment .”

A Welsh Government spokesman added: “Schools may arrange for pets to visit their sites, subject to their own risk assessment.”