Safety and Regulations

Mini Yogi Tails - Our Promise to Every Puppy

At Mini Yogi Tails, our puppies are at the heart of everything we do. We know how important their wellbeing is, and we take great care to make sure every puppy feels safe, happy, and relaxed during our sessions. We are constantly monitoring the puppies welfare before, after and throughout the sessions and if any puppy looks like they need a break there is a separate pen area with blankets, toys and fresh water available. We love and care for the puppies like they are our own.

A Calm, Happy Environment

Our sessions are designed to feel just like a puppy’s home life—gentle, cosy, and never overwhelming. Puppies are free to explore, rest, or play at their own pace. Not long after one of our events, the puppies are making their big move into their forever homes, which can include long car journeys, exposure to children and other adults, noises and smells they have never experienced before. So we truly believe that at one of our events they are being exposed to only positive socialisation and gentle hands to make their early moments the best ones.

Soft beds and quiet spaces are always available.
Puppies can take breaks whenever they need.
We keep sessions calm, slow, friendly with gentle interactions.

Working Closely with Puppy Owners

We only work with trusted, licensed and responsible puppy breeders. We do home visits to meet the breeders and background checks also to see the puppies in their home environment with mum present. We take time to learn about the breed so we can meet their needs when we are looking for a venue.

We only use one litter of puppies for our classes. These are one off events for each litter of puppies right before they go to their forever homes. Occasionally the same litter of puppies may return for an additional session on a different day.
Attendance depends on the age of the puppies (never before 8 weeks old) temperament, and energy levels.
We partner with experienced and responsible puppy carers.
Puppy owners fully understand the nature of our sessions.
Many have attended as participants themselves before bringing their own litters.
Puppies are only involved when it is suitable for their wellbeing.

Supporting Healthy Development

When done correctly, gentle social experiences can help puppies grow into confident, happy dogs. Positive human interaction during early development is important—but only when it is safe, age-appropriate, and carefully managed. We have an age policy in place, no children below the age of 12 years old are allowed to one of our events. Children aged between 12-16 years of age must be represented by an adult. Only on specific occasions as agreed by the breeders will we lower the age range to age 10 for certain breeds.

Gentle Interaction Only

We conduct a safety briefing at the start of each session on how to interact kindly and respectfully with the puppies, showing people how to hold a puppy and how to gently lower them down to the floor. There is a strict no standing policy in place, everyone must remain seated on their mats. The puppies are in the cosy pen area when people are entering or leaving the room for safety reasons.

Calm strokes, no grabbing or lifting a puppy above head height.
Holding the puppies securely close to the body to enable them to feel safe but not restricting movement.
No loud noises or chasing.
Always supervised by trained adults.
Our goal is to help the puppies feel safe and confident around new people so we encourage acting with empathy, and kindness around animals at all times.

Plenty of Rest & Breaks

Puppies need lots of sleep to grow and stay healthy. We ensure that a puppy is not disturbed if they are sleeping.

We schedule regular breaks between sessions, a minimum of 45 minutes between classes. We only ever run 2 sessions on one day meaning their total interaction time is 2.5 hours - this includes their early arrival to allow for settling in to a new environment prior to the start of a session.
Puppies are never overworked or over exposed.
If a puppy wants to nap, we let them rest undisturbed.

Our Approach to Regulations & Safety

We take our responsibilities seriously and always work within current UK animal welfare guidance, including the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018.

We do not own the puppies, and we do not train or exhibit them in ways outlined under Schedule 1 of these regulations.
Because of this, a licence is not currently required for our activities.

Even so, we choose to follow the highest standards of care at all times including very strict cleaning protocols.

We go to view each venue prior to an event being organised to make sure it is suitable in terms of flooring, size of space, to check there are hand washing facilities and a separate waiting area where possible for when people arrive. This gives people time to read and sign consent forms prior to the start of the class. The space must have heaters available so we can heat the room to an adequate temperature before the puppies arrive-21-23 degrees.

We always steam mop before and after an event with Parvo Safe Cleaning solution Anigene and use pet friendly cleaning spray Safe 4 Disinfectant cleaner to clean and wipe down all mats before and after each class.

People are instructed to wash their hands before entering a class, and remove all coats and shoes before entering the space. No personal belongings apart from mobile phones are permitted in the space.

We attend to any little accidents straight away and use puppy friendly cleaning products to wipe up any mess.

Clear Guidance for Every Session

To keep puppies safe, we make sure everyone understands how to behave around the animals.

No one is permitted to stand up or move around during the sessions.
All ticket holders receive a consent and guidance form upon booking which is directly emailed out to them to read over before their class. We also have printed, laminated versions for people to re read over when they arrive at a session before signing a consent form.
This includes clear instructions on safe, gentle puppy handling.
All participants must confirm they have read and understood this before taking part and sign the relevant consent form.

Trained, Attentive Staff

Our team is fully trained to support both people and puppies throughout the session.

Children must be above 12 years of age and represented by an adult.

Staff actively supervise all interactions
If a puppy is being handled incorrectly, guidance is given immediately
Sessions are calmly managed to prevent any unsafe situations

Putting Puppies First - Always

While we take every precaution, we also plan for the unexpected.

People are guided at all times when holding or interacting with puppies.
Sessions are structured to minimise risk and avoid unsafe handling.
If a puppy ever shows signs of stress or tiredness, they are immediately given a break.

The safety and comfort of every puppy is always our top priority.

The sessions are carefully planned out. When people arrive they will receive a safety briefing. Then they can interact and play with the puppies for approximately 15 minutes at the beginning of the session. A very gentle beginner friendly yoga or pilates session will then take place for approximately 30-40 minutes guided by a separate trained instructor. The yoga or pilates part of the event is designed to include very gentle movements carefully instructed with no standing poses. Most poses are done seated, laying down or on hands and knees with transitions carefully managed. During this time the puppies are free to explore, play, sit, lie down, cuddle, sleep or take themselves back to their comfy pen area for rest. The yoga or pilates element of the class takes up the majority of the time and is therefore considered the main activity of the class.

Their is ALWAYS fresh drinking water available for the puppies with water bowls brought from home. We strongly encourage the puppies to drink water often taking them over to the water bowls.

We will not ever work with or be associated with any puppy owners who deprive the animals of food, water, space etc. We work so closely with our breeders and discuss feeding schedules when planning out the events.

Every puppy we work with is loved like they are our own.

Our Promise

At Mini Yogi Tails, we believe yoga and pilates should be a joyful experience for both attendees and puppies. That means creating a space where everyone feels safe, calm, and cared for—every single session.