Canine caregiving course to be offered on campus

Reported by Joe Ayres

Canine caregivers with risk management certificates are receiving priority status when pursuing a career in the canine industry.

“If somebody were to drop off a resume and I saw [the professional dog walking certificate] we would definitely put them at the top of the list,” said Jess Tam, manager of Doghouse Daycare.

In response to the demand for canine caregiving, Langara College is offering a course in canine risk management starting on campus this Saturday.

Karen Ramsden, the professional dog walker certificate program coordinator, said the course covers the unknown threats coming from the outdoors and inside the home, along with how to keep dogs safe during dog fights.

“It’s also about keeping yourself safe with encounters you might have with other people [and] with other dogs you might meet on the path,”  Ramsden said.

Program can help in pursuing a career with animals

This course is a remolded expansion of the previous Keeping Dogs Safe course, and part of the professional dog walker certificate program. The certificate aims to give those pursuing work in dog handling more leverage when pursing a career. Graduates will add essential skills like teaching bylaws, first aid, and safety to their resumés.

“If you’re a dog walker, you have to make sure all the dogs fit well within the pack … if you have a reactive dog and it’s upsetting it can set them all off and become a dangerous thing,” said Tam.

Rebecca Ledger, animal behaviour and welfare scientist at Langara College, said in an email statement:

“What a regulated professional dog walking body would provide is assurances to clients that their dog walker knows how to manage challenging dogs, and prevent or deal with problems as the risk arises.”