Kathmandu, April 29: Mount Everest Kennel Club (MEKC) recently conducted a ten-day training programme for the kennel club owners and dog keepers. The training was participated in by over 20 kennel club operators and about a dozen dog owners. Dogs can be of great assistance to the elderly and the disabled, Australian trainer Stephen Austin said. Austin who also heads the dog security sector for the forthcoming Australian Olympic said that dogs could play an important role in crime control.

Nepalese dog owners, however, have not been able avail of their pets to the desired level. “Our initiatives during the last two years have been instrumental in proper domestication of dogs,” Club President Suresh Shah said.

MEKC has been working in collaboration with the Kathmandu Metropolitan City authority to control the street dogs as well as to manage dog keeping efficiently. The Club that has provided basic obedience training to about 500 dogs during the last two years plans to conduct the training programme annually. The Club presently claims of 12,000 dogs as its members.