Summer Camp Teaches Kids How To Care For Animals

A summer camp conducted by the Martinsville-Henry County SPCA aimed to teach children how to train and care for pets – and it did its job well!

This first part of the program involved each child choosing a cat to “adopt” for the week, and then the rest of the week was dedicated to dogs.

SPCA Pet Therapy Chairwoman Alice Ann Blevins addressed attendees when the week began, and started by asking why the children thought families abandoned pups. The answer was because of pups exhibiting bad behaviour that their parents could not correct!

That’s why Blevins stressed to the kids that when they brought home a puppy, they were taking on the responsibility of raising it into an obedient pup. She taught the children that the right way to correct bad behaviour was by using a one-word command, such as “no” or “quiet”, and not by reacting strongly to the pup. While the pup learns that command, the kids could make a sound that the pup doesn’t like – such as a tin can with some rocks in it – to jog the pup out of negative behaviour while accompanying that with the chosen one word command.

Blevins also taught attendees at the summer camp to train and praise their pups with treats, and she used cheese balls for the demonstration. When it was their turn to try, some kids thought of better treats that they liked more – such as bacon or chicken bits – and others aimed to use them to teach the puppies how to do tricks. Aside from that, Blevins also discussed the importance of crate training and proper dog walking.

These kids learned a lot from their summer camp experience! What a great program that educates children about proper care and training. Do like and share!