This animal lover's dream began when Nooraine Fazal, CEO and Managing Trustee of the Inventure Academy was advised by a friend to adopt a puppy. Loving the idea, it got her wondering why she couldn't introduce this concept in the school that she heads. That's how Inventure Academy in Sarjapur, Bengaluru became home for four puppies - Mia, Talia, Raksha and Tasha.
Nooraine had an idea in her head before she introduced the pups to her students - to bring empathy into this individualistic world. "We need our children to learn how to share and empathise with others. A pet can teach you a lot, including tolerance, which is much needed in a world where everyone has their own opinion. Inventure proudly introduces humanitarianism to the students and these puppies help them get closer to achieving their goals each day," she says.
Sanaaz Doust, a counsellor at the academy, also vouches that the initiative can help children vent their emotions well. "Whenever a kid talks to me about their problems, I make sure that they also have some kind of contact with the puppies. They can cuddle them while talking to me and that helps lower their stress levels," she says. Sanaaz claims that there are many instances where the puppies have helped students unload their emotional baggage. For instance, a primary school girl would often visit her to hug one of the puppies and cry. "I allow that because I find it liberating and it makes the child feel lighter," she explains.
The puppies also help students with speech problems. But how? "We encourage students to read aloud in front of the puppies. That way they feel engaged and there is no one to judge them as well," Shenaaz says. The fact that the puppies are doing so much for the students is probably the reason why there are no restrictions imposed on them. "You can find them in the field, library and particularly in the counselling room," says Nooraine.
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And how do parents react? Nooraine claims that there has been no objection from parents so far. "We thought that there might be some resistance, but not even a single parent has raised an issue. Children, of course, took a day or two to get used to the puppies, but now it is a blessing to see them playing with the puppies," says Nooraine, who also talks about the characteristic of each puppy. While she thinks Mia is the mischievous one, Talia is the most sensitive. "We have the best trainers and groomers for the puppies so that they can be more comfortable with so many children," she concludes.
