NO EVIDENCE OF POOR PAW HYGIENE, SAY RESEARCHERS

Assistance dog charity Dogs for Good has welcomed the findings of a study carried out in The Netherlands regarding the hygiene of canine paws in hospitals.

Utrecht University’s research has revealed that assistance dogs’ paws are actually cleaner than the soles of people’s shoes, so fears of them bringing harmful bacteria into hospitals are unfounded.

Eighty one per cent of Dutch assistance dog users surveyed said they were still regularly refused entry to public places with their dogs, even though this is prohibited by law.