Funda Nenja works to build a bond between children and their canine friends; now they are gearing up to spoil the class of 2019!
KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa – Funda Nenja runs in the township of Mpophomeni, near Howick, in the KZN Midlands of South Africa. On average, 100 children and their dogs attend weekly dog training sessions which happen on Friday afternoons at Zamethule Primary School in the township.
These lessons not only teach the dogs some skills, but it also helps the children bond with their pets and forms a deeper connection. These new classes help educate children in animal welfare and encourage them to show their families how to treat animals.
Classes are taught by volunteer instructors and some of the instructors are previous pupils who have gone through the training programme themselves.
All dogs on the programme are given a collar and a lead and are dewormed. The children are given training treats during classes to help with training and sent home with a small bag to continue training in a familiar environment.
The organisation works on donations from the public. They accept all dog-related items which are used during the classes or sent home with the children. They also regularly get other types of donations which has helped them start a jumble sale to raise funds for the charity.
Now that the festive season is around the corner, a group have come together to make Christmas hampers for all the children and dogs currently enrolled at Funda Nenja.
Glynn and Jean Harborth of The Rotary Club of Hilton and Howick, as well as a few of the other Rotarians, assisted with packing 120 hampers. Each hamper has items for both the child and the dog in training.
They will be handed out at the final Funda Nenja class of 2019. You can follow their last few updates before the year ends via Facebook here.
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