ANGLICAN SOCIETY FOR THE WELFARE OF ANIMALS RAINING CATS AND DOGS Children s pack Animal Welfare Sunday 2012
What, Why and Woof: Central Themes As Christians we believe that human beings are made in the image of a loving, caring creator God; and that we should live in a way which reflects this. We also believe that God gave human beings a special duty to care for other animals, and the Earth which we share with them. This year Animal Welfare Sunday is focusing on our treatment of cats and dogs. At present in the UK, animal charities are facing a flood of unwanted, abandoned and abused pets. An already difficult situation was made worse by the onset of the current economic crisis, and countless dogs and cats have suffered as a result. How and why should we respond to this as a church? Sunday School Resources: 0-12 year olds. Teaching/Key Ideas God made animals and God made us. He loves and cares for everything which he has made. Animals like dogs and cats have thoughts and feelings. They can be warm or cold, hungry or well-fed, lonely or loved and frightened or playful. Can you really imagine a loving God making creatures able to be happy or sad; and then not caring about the kind of lives which they have? God has made human beings able to do things which dogs and cats can t. We can talk in words and we can understand the difference between right and wrong. Because human beings are special like this, we have a special responsibility to look after other animals. Dogs and cats rely on human beings much more than wild animals do. Lots of them have a happy time in loving homes, but unfortunately some others are neglected, lost or treated badly by the human beings around them. We can all do something to help ensure as many dogs and cats as possible live good lives, whether or not we have pets ourselves. Doing something to help animals in need is part of living a Christian life. Caring for God s world and the creatures in it is not an extra thing to do if we have time or if we feel like it, it is something which God asks and expects of us all as human beings. 2 Raining Cats and Dogs
Bible Readings Here are a few suggestions. Obviously which you choose will depend upon the age of the children and the activities you are planning: Genesis 1:24-31 - God creates human beings and animals, and gives human beings special responsibility for the other creatures. Psalm 148 - The whole universe praises God together-angels, animals and human beings. Luke 12:6 - God notices all of his creatures, even individual sparrows. If he watches sparrows he watches dogs and cats! 1 John 7-9 - God is love. Activities Again, which of these you choose will depend upon the age/personalities of the children and space/resources available: Dogs and cats have feelings too. This is intended to get children thinking about the physical and emotional experiences we share with animals like dogs and cats. Take a bag or box, straw or shredded paper and a variety of objects which are interesting to feel and produce different sensations. It really doesn t matter which objects you use, but here are a few suggestions: a cold tea-spoon which has been in the fridge, a warm bean-bag zapped in the microwave, a prickly nail-brush, a soft silky scarf and a wet squidgy sponge (but not sopping so that it soaks everything around it!). Also get some saucers/ramekins, tea-spoons or teeny chunks of bread and a variety of foods with strong and interesting tastes and smells e.g. honey, chilli oil, vinegar, smelly cheese. Again it doesn t really matter what you use, just be careful not to cause real distress! Let everyone put their hand into the box/bag, and feel the different objects inside. Then let everyone taste the foods, either on spoons or bread. Talk about how some physical experiences are nice and some are horrible! What is it like to be hungry, cold or in pain? What is it like to be warm, comfortable or enjoying your favourite food? Also talk about how we have good and bad emotional experiences. We know what it s like to feel lonely, frightened or sad and we know what it s like to feel 3 by Revd Helen Hall
happy, loved or playful. Mammals like dogs and cats (and possibly other creatures) are capable of experiencing all of these things, and often do! Dog and Cat Prayer Game This is intended to encourage children to think about special things about dogs and cats, and to thank God for these as the Creator and source of all good things. It may also be a handy way of working off some excess energy! The basic game works in pretty much the same way as duck and goose. Everybody sits in a circle and one person is chosen as it. That person then walks around the outside of the circle (gently!), patting everyone in turn on the head and saying cat with each pat, until they decide to tag somebody by saying dog. Once tagged the person in the circle has to get up and chase it. If it manages to run all the way around the circle and get to the empty spot vacated by the dog without being tagged, then the dog becomes it. If not, the game continues as before. Either way, before beginning their turn as it the player has to say something which they like about either dogs or cats (or both!), and thank God for this. e.g. thank you God that my cat Socks is soft to cuddle; thank you God that dogs help rescue people after earthquakes. Needless to say the prayer isn t part of the challenge of the game, so help and prompting is allowed/encouraged if anybody gets shy or stuck. 4 Raining Cats and Dogs
Dog and Cat Hats This is intended to help children to think positively about dogs and cats, empathise with them and to provide a quieter activity if desired. Take a piece of A4 paper and fold the corner to make a triangle. Cut off the left over rectangle at the top with scissors. Fold over two triangles. If you are making a dog with floppy ears, you have now finished folding and can draw on a face. If you are making a cat, or a dog with pointy ears, fold back the ends of the downward facing triangles. 5 by Revd Helen Hall
Again you can now draw on a face, whiskers etc. Paper, scissors and some crayons or felt-tips are more than sufficient for this. If you feel like doing something more exciting, then googly eye stickers are a fun possibility. Whilst the hats are being made it should be possible to talk to the participants about why they chose to make a dog or a cat, what these animals are like and what they need to have happy lives. What can/should we do? Obviously children are easily and seriously distressed by too much information about animal cruelty, and also have a knack of asking pointed and awkward questions! Discussing the current situation and our response to it needs to be carefully managed and age-appropriate for the youngest/most sensitive child present. It is also important to remember that children are not in charge of the households in which they live, and cannot independently make ethical and economic choices. Inducing guilt or anxiety about matters not within their control is certainly not the aim. The overriding message is that we should always treat dogs, cats and the rest of God s creatures with love and respect. If ever you hear anyone saying that animals don t matter, you can politely tell them that they matter to God! And if ever you see or find out about a dog or cat which is lost, neglected or in trouble, tell an adult whom you trust. There are charities who will do their very best to help if they are contacted, and sometimes the police may need to be involved. Another point is that if you are ever thinking of getting a dog or a cat, do lots of research into the kind of home and environment s/he will need to thrive. The RSPCA website may be a good place to start. Perhaps your family might consider getting a rescue dog or cat from a charity. If not, make sure that the puppy or kitten comes from a good home where his/her mum is well cared for. A further possibility is doing something as a Sunday school to raise money for a local or national charity which helps dogs and cats in need. This doesn t have to be a big or long term project if that isn t practical or desirable. In these economic times all charities are squeezed and every bit of support makes a difference. Organising a sponsored walk or cake sale could buy some much needed animal food or pay for a few essential vaccinations. It would also be a tangible demonstration that the Church really does take caring for animals seriously. 6 Raining Cats and Dogs
Closing prayer Loving God, we thank you for dogs: for wagging tails and wet noses, for welcoming woofs and warm hearts. Loving God, we thank you for cats: for sleek fur and silent paws, for soft kisses and springing feet. Loving God, we thank you for trusting us with dogs and cats: give us wise minds and willing hands, give us watchful eyes and well-made plans. Amen. Further information and resources Please see the Children and Young Person s page of the ASWA website for more information and ideas about animal welfare and Christianity. Look out too for the Children s page in the summer edition of the ASWA magazine. 7 by Revd Helen Hall
ANGLICAN SOCIETY FOR THE WELFARE OF ANIMALS Putting Animals on the Agenda of the Christian Church The Anglican Society for the Welfare of Animals P.O. Box 7193, Hook, Hampshire RG27 8GT. UK Telephone: +44 (0)1252 843093 Website: www.aswa.org.uk E-mail: AngSocWelAnimals@aol.com