Read Aloud: Simple
Enrichment for Dogs
in Shelters
Reading aloud to dogs is one of the ongoing programs developed by The Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland. This activity is called Read and Relax, where the volunteers would
read a book to dogs.
By: Drh.Mikeu Paujiah, Dipl.Montessori
Translator : Anjani Setya Utami
This activity takes only a little time and it is notnecessarily that they need to finish reading the book at one go. What matters most is the focus and the composure of the volunteers while reading the book.
Pay attention to the dos and don’ts of reading aloud to dogs;
- Prepare the book.
- Grab yourself a chair and sit calmly and comfortably in front of the cage.
- Ignore the barking, keep focused on reading although the dogs might seem not to care at all.
- Make sure that the dogs are already satiated and sleepy.
- You don’t have to finish reading the book in one go.
- You can stop reading if the situation is not conducive.
- Restrain yourself from playing with the dogs while you read.
The benefits of reading aloud activities for dogs are:
- Teaching the dogs to stay calm around humans.
- Let the dogs relish the presence of humans without needing to be the centre of attention.
- Learning to get used to the downtime which will be very much useful when in their adopter home.
- Increasing the chance of adoption.
Are you interested to try?
Source:
read and relax animal enrichment program, ASPCAPRO; open mei 2013
