Young dog lovers encouraged to get creative with their canine companions to win £100

Kennel Club Educational Trust initiates new competition with the Young Kennel Club to inspire members during lockdown.

In June, the Kennel Club Educational Trust (KCET) and Young Kennel Club (YKC) are joining forces by encouraging YKC members to showcase their creative flair and share what they have been up to during lockdown, with three youngsters having the chance to win £100.

Open to all YKC members, aged 6 – 24, young dog lovers will be invited to submit a short piece that encapsulates lockdown life for them and their dog(s) during the Covid-19 pandemic. This can be in the form of a 60-second video, a series of images and/or written prose, up to a maximum of four sentences.

Participants will be split into three age categories and each age group will have a week to submit their entries. The competition will run over the following days:

• 29^th June – 6^th July: 6-11 years (winner announced via Facebook and Instagram on 6^th July)
• 30^th June – 7^th July: 12-17 years (winner announced via Facebook and Instagram on 7^th July)
• 1^st – 8^th July: 18-24 years (winner announced via Facebook and Instagram on 8^th July)

Entrants will need to submit their creations via the YKC Facebook group (www.facebook.com/groups/ykc.news.thekennelclubuk) or Instagram (www.instagram.com/youngkennelclubuk) using the hashtag #YKCLifeinLockdown. Alternatively, entrants can also take part by emailing the YKC team. More information can be found by visiting www.ykc.org.uk/content/digital-resources-and-printables/ykc-life-in-lockdown/.

The Young Kennel Club has been providing its dedicated members with fun games and activities to enjoy with their dogs during lockdown across their website and social channels, including a successful online dog show last month, which saw over 1,000 entries, as well as a series of upcoming drawing tutorials, printable quizzes, colouring pages and more.

Gerald King, Chairman of the Kennel Club Educational Trust said: “Despite being stuck at home and unable to take part in the usual classes and social events that they enjoy, we know that many dogs and their young owners have been using this time as an opportunity to do plenty of training, such as obedience, agility, or learning new tricks, as well as spending a lot of quality time with their favourite companions.

“One of the many areas the Educational Trust is committed to is the development of young people, in particular Young Kennel Club members, and we have been very impressed by how they have adapted to such an unstable and difficult time, as demonstrated by last month’s online dog show. As such, we hope this competition will inspire them further to have fun and get creative with their four-legged friends.”

The Kennel Club Educational Trust was established in 2007 with the initial aim to help advance the education of the public, dog owners and trainers in responsible dog ownership, including public safety, obedience training and the health and welfare of dogs.

Over time this has evolved into focusing on education for all canine activities including judges training seminars, breed specific films (including breeding, whelping and health), the Safe and Sound and Bark and Read schemes, the Canine Genetics and Epidemiology Journal and funding towards the development of young people, in particular Young Kennel Club members.

Find out more about the work of the Educational Trust.

More information for parents and/or young dog lovers who are interested in joining the Young Kennel Club is available at www.ykc.org.uk.