PET CHARITY IN DRIVE TO HELP US GET BARK TO WORK
DOGS Trust and Lucy Kennedy are calling for dogs to be allowed into the office post pandemic, to keep their beloved animals with their owners.
The presenter told the Irish Daily Mail that she would love to bring her rescue dog into the workplace, and sees no issue with wellbehaved dogs in the office.
The comments wade into a lively debate surrounding a campaign by the charity Dogs Trust to allow employees to bring their four-legged friends to work.
As well as co-presenting Ireland’s Classic Hits radio breakfast show with broadcaster Colm Hayes, Ms Kennedy is the proud owner of rescue dog Riley, who regularly features on the presenter’s Instagram donning head scarfs and sunglasses.
‘I would love to bring Riley into Ireland’s Classic Hits every morning. She’s so good and Colm Hayes loves dogs too,’ she said.
Ms Kennedy added: ‘If it’s an office environment and your dog is well behaved, I don’t see the problem. I wouldn’t mind if a colleague brought their dog in!’
The comments counter the vehement rejection of office dogs by presenter Aonghus McAnally during RTÉ’s Claire Byrne Live on Monday.
Mr McAnally said his fear of dogs would prevent him from working around animals.
Dogs Trust acknowledged that pets would not be suitable for every workplace but said allowing dogs into offices could prevent owners from ditching their animals as lockdown lifts.
By September 23 last, the charity said that it had received 1,586 requests from owners wanting to surrender their dogs.
This was 275 more than the total surrender requests made in 2020, which came to 1,311.
Ciara Byrne, head of communications at Dogs Trust, told the Mail: ‘We would never put someone who is afraid of dogs in a situation where they have a dog sitting next to them.
‘It’s not something we want to force upon people but we want to give them options. You’re not going to have dogs coming into the office and running riot.
Research has shown dogs at work boost productivity and have positive health benefits,’ she added.
Ms Byrne said most people surrender their dogs due to behavioural problems such as barking or eating furniture, which often develop when animals are left at home for long periods of time.
Bringing dogs into the office could break the cycle of unwanted behaviours and prevent ‘another wave of surrender requests’.
The charity wants Ireland to, ahem, take the lead from dog-friendly countries such as the UK and welcome dogs not only to the office but to restaurants, hotels, public transport and bars.
Ms Byrne said: ‘There is no such thing as an irresponsible dog, it’s about educating people to be responsible owners. We would not advise taking an untrained puppy into the office, for example. It’s about common sense.’