Esther Ring of Top Barkz.

Bark to the top

After lockdown, we all found socialising, that bit more difficult. But what about our dogs?

Top Barkz is an interactive company founded by Esther Ring, that specialises in training, socialising, and play dates for our canines, to learn social skills with other dogs and people that they wouldn’t get from a home environment.

When we venture outside our home, there are plenty of places for us to interact with other people, and Esther has created an environment just like that but for our furry friends.

She said: “Dogs are social animals like us, and play is a very important part of their enrichment and early development to keep them mentally stimulated. All puppies are social and need to have this time to learn how to be a dog. Most puppies will love the company of other dogs to develop their communication skills.”

Esther is based in the Marina Market in Cork city and runs free playdates almost every weekend from 10.30 to 12.30pm while running courses for multiple dog age groups each month. See Top Barkz on Instagram and Facebook for further details.

Esther continued: “My courses are four weeks long, and there is dog training for puppies under six months, for puppies over six months, and then twelve months plus, and from there I can offer them further training if they feel they need it at home.”

Top Barkz is about giving them an outlet in order to play and to educate people on how their puppies interact with other dogs.

She added: “I am a play specialist, and I want to educate dog owners on the importance of play and to show them that it is okay for dogs to interact with other dogs. As it is done in a nice, supervised environment, this service provides dog owners with a chance to see their dogs’ play style and find out what they like and what they don’t like because they are just like us.”

Our dogs are a part of our families and if you feel like your dog needs a bit of social assistance or simply needs help making friends, pop down to the Marina Market and watch your puppy mature and become a social dog!