The puppy yoga trend has much darker side that has been exposed, it has been reported.
An undercover investigation into the popular trend has uncovered some shocking secrets…
Undercover puppy yoga trend investigations
Puppy yoga is a hugely popular trend at the moment – for the public and influencers alike. Puppy yoga does what it says on the tin – you do yoga with puppies. It’s cute and looks like a lot of fun. However, according to a new investigation launched by ITV News, the trend also has a dark side too.
Customers pay up to £40 to do puppy yoga. However, it doesn’t seem as though any have any idea of the impact puppy yoga can have on the dogs involved.
The ITV News investigation reportedly found a number of basic animal welfare requirements were not being met.
Participants are told how the yoga classes are “really really good” for puppies’ socalisation. However, the RSPCA has slammed these claims.
Puppy yoga trend slammed
The science and policy officer for dog welfare and behaviour at the RSPCA, Esme Wheeler, said: “This is entertainment, in my view, which is operating under the guise of socialisation. But this is not to the benefit of the dogs.”
“There is nothing in that environment which I would consider to be beneficial to the health, the welfare or the behavioural lifelong development of these animals,” she then said.
“Socialisation is about introducing a young animal to something in a way which is gradual calm, and they have the freedom to move away,” she then added.
According to the ITV investigation, one puppy yoga location didn’t provide water for the dogs during the session. Their reasoning for this was that it might “make them pee more”.
Dark side of the trend exposed
Another puppy yoga location reportedly saw sleeping puppies often getting woken up. “Sleep deprivation is a form of torture, and there’s no reason to assume that this won’t be as damaging to these dogs,” Esme said.
“This looks like an environment that has the potential to be incredibly distressing for these animals. They’re constantly picked up, they don’t have the ability to exercise any choice or control in that situation,” she then said.
Another class used puppies that were aged just six-and-a-half weeks old. However, these puppies are far too young and are meant to be still feeding off their mother.
“Puppies need to be fed four times a day at this point and they certainly need access to water […] so anything that takes them out of a natural environment is not good for the puppies,” Esme said.
Some puppies even do up to three lessons a day, which is obviously, exhausting for them. “These are young dogs that are being repeatedly used for these activities and there is just no way that they can obtain the amount of rest that they need at that age,” Esme said.
The companies exposed in the investigation declined to comment when approached by ITV.
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