A Spa for dogs? Yep, Steinbrenner High school has exactly that. From soap suds to nail clippers the Steinbrenner FFA club takes loving care of the dogs of teachers and other staff whilst they work.
This event starts off with the agriculture teachers, Mrs. Morrison and Mrs. Switzer, reaching out to the school about the upcoming dog spa. There are only about 15-20 spots available in the room and it varies in size of the dog itself.
“We only have 4 kernels for big dogs,” states Jillian Towe, an FFA member at Steinbrenner.
The spa itself has a room dedicated to it. It’s located by the agriculture and drivers’ education room and has its own separate entrance through a garage door. When the pets are not being groomed, they are held in kernels with the other dogs.
The Dog Spa has been a tradition at Steinbrenner since 2009. “it’s widely known throughout school” says Kate-Lyn Easterwood, a first-year student in FFA.
The vet students look forward to pet spa every year and oversee a big part of the grooming themselves. The vet 1 students take care of the washing and drying, and the Vet 2 and above students handle the more experienced work such as clipping the nails and shearing the dogs. This system ensures the safety of the dogs and keeps the spa running smoothly. In addition, there is always a teacher in the classroom making sure the students are being responsible and safely papering the dogs.
In between washes the dogs get taken outside for walks around the schools to get rid of the energy they have, and to keep the pups from being cooped up for too long.
The grooming occurs throughout the entire school day and some vet students opt out from the academic day in order to help out. There are also students that switch out between periods and take over for another like a shift exchange.
The FFA officers also play a crucial role in the Pet Spa. They may take care of things such as paperwork collection and advertising to the teachers about the spa.
The main reason dog spa is such a success at Steinbrenner is because of the dedication the students have to the program and the fact that they enjoy taking care of the animals even if it is demanding work.
“Who doesn’t want to spend their entire day with dogs,” states Towe.
Not only is dog spa lots of fun, but the event is also a wonderful way to promote FFA and gives the volunteers an opportunity to spend time with animals and get some practice with the proper care of them before going out into fields like veterinary practice. The Dog Spa is an overall fun experience for students and pets alike and helps the school’s staff with the care of their pet.
Saule Kondra// Staff writer
