Fish4Dogs, an official supporter of Bring Your Dog to Work Day, is proud of the fact that it encourages staff to take their four-legged friends into the office all year round.
 

 
On average there are 12 dogs in the office, who are the regular ‘staff’ who come in everyday – but then when more people are in, the number can increase to 20, which creates a real buzz and works if everyone is prepared.
 
The Fish4Dogs team marked the occasion early this year to allow the Ops Board to all participate in the fun.  The company who are positioned as champions of fish as the perfect protein,  naturally put fish on the menu, fish and chips served by ‘The Village’ a local fish and chip shop van – for all staff and special guests at an event in the grounds of its Worcestershire head office, whilst the dogs were served Finest Complete food made with Norwegian Salmon and potato.
 

 
As well as hearty fish lunch, the team were joined by two of its key partners – Birmingham Dogs Home and the UK Flyball League,both sponsored by Fish4Dogs.
 
Jen Collins, of the UK Flyball League gave a presentation on the fast paced sport, and talked about how dogs and handlers are trained to take part and hone their skills through staggered leagues to provide inclusive opportunities for those at different levels.
 
Giles Webber, CEO of Birmingham Dogs Home, bought along a new friend – springer spaniel Riley, who is looking for a new forever home.  Giles talked about the work of the centre to rescue, reunite and rehome thousands of dogs every year.
 
Caricature artist Richard Russell was also in attendance at the event – capturing likenesses of Fish4Dogs’ canine colleagues.
 
Said event organiser Theresa Hayes: “In support of National Bring Your Dog To Work Day and to help raise awareness of this charitable event, we also want to show businesses just how easy it can be to have dogs in the workplace as a permanent fixture when managed appropriately. Having dogs in the office is hugely beneficial for general staff wellbeing. In the 12 years we have been a dog-friendly workplace we have found it to create a wonderful working environment which helps to increase productivity and staff retention”.
 
Fish4Dogs has produced a free downloadable guide to help other workplaces become dog-friendly. It can be found at https://www.fish4dogs.com/caninecolleagues and on Fish4Dogs’ social media channels.