Classroom pets: I currently have 4 goldfish and a river tank set up with native river dwellers (fish, crayfish, etc.).
Previous class pets: I have had gerbils, hamsters, cockatiels, finches, snakes, and anoles.
Pets at home: Besides Denali, I have two other dogs, a cat, and an African Grey parrot.
Other animal projects: We have done a unit on insects where the students watched mealworms. We will also be doing
a unit on birds and bird development this spring.
Animal info. wanted: I am looking for information on using dogs in the classroom. I acquired a siberian husky/golden retriever mix puppy at thanksgiving. My building principal is excited about having the dog in the classroom. I have incorporated "Denali" into my curriculum. My students are keeping a growth chart on Denali. Twice a week (Monday and Friday) the students take and record measurements in length, height, girth, and weight. These measurements are then passed on to the 6th grade math teacher who uses this information to practice graphing with our students. I have set up some basic rules for my students and for the safety and well-being of the puppy. I have 2 students per class period each day who are selected to be puppy sitters. They have the responsibilty of taking Denali out for potty breaks, cleaning up after him indoors or outdoors, and making sure he has food and water. In order to be able to puppy sit you must have your work from the previous week turned in. Boy has that had a positive impact on kids turning in their work! There are several students who come up to me and ask if they can have lunch detention so they can eat with Denali. We don't call that lunch detention. We refer to that as Dining with Denali. My tardy problem has essentially ceased since Denali came to school. I am hoping to have Denali certified as a therapy dog when he gets older. Right now we are working on basic obedience. Denali is a master sitter! The students are having a chance to learn about dog training, responsible pet ownership, and spaying and neutering. He will be neutered in March at the beginning of spring break. (Not exactly the best spring break activity, but a necessary one!). My building principal and I have talked about getting a service dog for the school for next year. We would like for our kids to have the opportunity to raise it at school and then have it trained and returned to us. After we have our own service dog, I think it would be a wonderful experience to do that type of project annually.

I would love to hear from other teachers who have done something similar and find out what their experiences have been. How did they go about it? What problems did they encounter? How were those problems solved?

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