Our School Dog

Frequently Asked Questions

Why didn’t Denim become our School Dog?

• Denim, Maria’s dog, is getting to be an older dog. It’s harder for older dogs to learn new skills that School Dogs need, like listening to kids read aloud or helping someone calm down when they are sad. Lou is a puppy, so she can learn all those skills! (We all still love Denim though!)

Who will Lou live with?

• Lou belongs to Kerry and her family. She will live with them!
• Kerry, Hollie, Tildie and Rory decided to get a puppy a long time ago. When Kerry said to Maria that she was getting a puppy, Maria got very excited and asked “pleeeeeease can your puppy come and work at Merri-bek Primary School, just like you do?!!”

What if someone is allergic to dogs?

• Poodles have a different kind of fur to most dogs. It doesn’t fall out much, and this means people aren’t as allergic to poodles. If someone is really allergic to Lucie, we can make sure that Lucie doesn’t go in their classroom, and maybe they can still play with her outside. 

What if I am scared of dogs?

• Lou will do a lot of training so that she is a Very Good Dog. She will know how to be gentle, quiet and calm. She will learn not to jump on you. She will also be quite small, and very curly and soft!
• You never have to pat her if you don’t want to, it’s ok just to watch her.
• There will always be a grown up with Lou. They will also do special training to make sure they know how to help Lou and kids get along.
• You can tell your teacher if you feel scared.