Pre-loved teddies helping children cope with Covid induced anxiety
Happy Wednesday neighbours,
They were once forlorn teddy bear orphans, discarded to a charity shop – until a mother and daughter realised they could be the key to helping children cope with anxiety.
Nicky Buist and daughter Jaz Lotz have been re-purposing pre-loved soft toys by weighting them with sand and lacing them with lavender as a calming strategy for overwhelmed children.
Passionate about helping young people, the pair wanted to help combat what they see as an increasing need to help parents find ways of dealing with their child’s feelings of anxiety and sadness.
A month ago they formed Weighty Warriors after trials with weighted teddy bears proved successful with the children they worked with.
They have since begun selling the soft toys around New Zealand, including to schools in Auckland and Rolleston.
Read the full story by clicking 'Read more' below.
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
Best way to use leftovers?
I'm sure you've got some excess ham at home or cold roast potatoes.
What are some of your favourite ways to use leftover food from Christmas day? Share below.