Nine wooden kennels, crafted by year 11 and 12 students taking part in Ara’s carpentry dual enrolment programme, have been generously donated to the SPCA.
The programme, which combines school studies with hands-on vocational learning across a range of subjects, wrapped up last month.
“We were delighted to deliver these finished projects to the SPCA as we rounded off classes for the year,” said Ara portfolio manager for construction trades Mandy Gould.
“It’s a win for everyone,” she said.
The idea came from an Ara staff member who was keen to see the snug kennels go to good homes.
Made of plywood with treated timber footings and treated fence palings for roofing, they took several weeks to measure, cut and construct, with students working in small teams.
Said carpentry tutor Tim Melker: “It’s actually a great project to learn the elements of building a house.
“With rafters and bargeboards and footings, they get an understanding of the terminology and use power tools and hand tools along the way.”
Christchurch SPCA centre manager Natasha Sutton said the kennels would be put to good use in play spaces “during run around time” or distributed as needed.
“They’re great for our dogs to chill out in or have a nap out of the sun. But they’ll be handy for those who might not have a kennel lined up,” she said.
“We rely so heavily on our community for lots of things, and donations like this are just fantastic. We can’t thank Ara enough.”
Sutton said it was a busy time at the centre with animals awaiting adoption and the kitten season in full swing.
She said she would love people who are not going away and have time on their hands to consider fostering an animal for the holidays.
“If people are off work and having a nice break ... we’d love them to consider fostering for us because we have lots of animals in the shelter who would rather be out in a home for this period.
“Fostering is a fantastic way to give some love to an animal in need, especially those who need to learn what a loving home feels like,” Sutton said.
- Anyone interested in fostering a dog can contact the SPCA via email at christchurch.info@spca.nz
