FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Big Paws of the Ozarks (BPOZ) in Fayetteville received a $10,000 grant from the Best Friends Animal Society to Support Community Programs.
The grant will fund new training and behavior programs through Big Paws Academy that will benefit dogs in the community.
BPOZ partnered with Off Leash K9 to begin Big Paws Academy in 2022. The academy offers affordable and accessible training classes to dog owners in Northwest Arkansas.
All Big Paws Academy proceeds will directly support the rescue operations of BPOZ. The funds will provide free training worships for local shelter workers, dogs in shelters, and for recently adopted dogs.
There will be three levels of training to the program:
- Shelter workshops
- Individual sessions
- Roup workshops
Some class topics include loose leash walking, behavior management, dog socialization.
Employees will be equipped with the necessary skills to provide behavioral help to dogs in their care. BPOZ says rescue dogs tend to have trauma that results in behavioral issues. Behavioral issues decrease their chances of adoption and increase the risks of being euthanized.
Behavior modification training will help with this problem and the animal welfare in the community overall. The individual and group sessions will work with families who have recently adopted and need help accommodating their new dog into the home.
BPOZ says they hope these workshops will help increase adoption rates from local shelters and rescues.
For more information about Big Paws of the Ozarks and Big Paws Academy, click here.