Meet the Education Team Part 2

Meet South East Education Officer Deirdre and her dogs Sadhbh, Cónán and Béibhinn.  Deirdre tells us about her role as part of the Education Team.

 

 

 

Hi Deirdre, tell us a bit about yourself.

My name is Deirdre Uí Dhubhda.  I am a fully qualified secondary school teacher, but my passion for dogs brought me to the role of Education Officer at Dogs Trust where I can combine my love of teaching with my love of dogs!

 

How long have you worked at Dogs Trust?

I first began working at Dogs Trust in January 2011, but I moved to the South East region in January 2012.

 

What parts of Ireland do you visit?

I visit primary schools and community groups in the five counties in the Sunny South East – Waterford, Kilkenny, Carlow, Wexford and Tipperary.

 

Tell us about your Education Dogs.

I am lucky enough to have three Education Dogs, Sadhbh and Cónán are lively 4 and 3 year old Miniature Schnauzers while Béibhinn is an affectionate Crossbreed.  Sadhbh and Cónán come with me the first time I visit a school while Béibhinn normally comes with me the second time.  They all have tonnes of personality and must be some of the luckiest dogs in the world to get to come to work with me every day and meet so many lovely children.

 

What makes a good Education Dog?

Any Education Dog must be trained and undergo a temperament and behaviour assessment with our qualified Training and Behaviour Advisors to ensure their suitability to work with children and in a school environment.  As you can imagine, schools are a very different environment to what a dog comes across in his or her daily life so an Education Dog must be very adaptable to change and able to cope with noisy, busy places.  Our Education Dogs are always friendly, calm, patient and well-behaved.  They all enjoy meeting children safely on a daily basis and bring such joy to them; even children who have previously been afraid of dogs.

 

Do you have any advice for people who are considering getting a dog of their own?

As part of Education Programme, we encourage children and their families to ‘press paws’ and stop and think about the decision to take a dog into their lives.  After all, they are a 15 year commitment.  It is important to think about what your dog will need to be healthy and happy, how much it costs to keep a dog, how to interact safely with your new pal and whether you have the time to commit to such a sociable animal – children can learn all this information when they attend our free educational workshops. And of course we would also love people to consider adopting a dog from Dogs Trust to give a dog in need the happiness they deserve – I have to say my favourite breed of dog is rescue dog!

 

If you would like to book a workshop with Deirdre you can contact her on 087 296 5883 or at deirdre.uidhubhda@dogstrust.ie.

If you would like to find out if Dogs Trust offers FREE Education Workshops in your area, contact education@dogstrust.ie.