Several parents say they are frustrated after learning two support dogs will not be returning to a Kitchener elementary school.

Nacho, a yellow lab, and Quessa, a black lab, had been attending Sheppard Public School for four years.

“I was shocked there was no formal communication or transition plan from the school,” said parent and school council member Lauren Logan.

Both dogs were part of the Canine Assisted Response program run by the nonprofit group National Service Dogs (NSD). The program began in 2013 and is just one of three programs in Canada and the first of its kind in Ontario.

The dogs were brought to Sheppard Public School at no cost to the school and provided comfort and support to students, said Rochelle Barber, director of operations at NSD.

“We had never heard any feedback from the board that it was anything other than a success and that it would continue. We were quite surprised when they unexpectedly stopped the program,” Barber said.

They are officially called service dogs, which differ from service dogs in that service dogs are owned by only one person.

On the other hand, establishment dogs belong to an organization and are accessible to all students.

The Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) said the program was terminated “due to a lack of data, making it impossible to assess its performance and impact on students and staff.” said associate director Bill Lemon in an emailed statement to CBC News.

Lemon also noted that the facility’s dogs do not meet the definition of a service animal as outlined in board governance documents or under the Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities Act. Ontario.

Madison Kolberg is a parent and co-chair of the Sheppard Public School Parent Council. She says data was collected on the dogs.

“There was no attempt to access the data actually collected,” Kolberg said, adding that the data was collected weekly by the school.

Kolberg provided CBC News with a copy of a blank data sheet that was allegedly used to collect data each week.

CBC News reached out to WRDSB for a response regarding the data sheets, but they did not respond in time for publication.

Logan said the dogs had a huge impact on his son.

“He was very anxious; he had a lot of trust issues with adults in a school setting,” Logan said. “It was these dogs that bridged that gap for him.”

The dogs were present at the school daily, helping students in various areas.

Children who are nervous about reading aloud could read to one of the dogs to build their confidence.

Dogs were also used to defuse volatile situations and to reward good behavior.

Barber said WRDSB has not given his organization any negative feedback.

Kolberg says the news of the program’s removal surprised her.

“There has been no communication from the school or the principal,” she said. “It worried me to answer my child’s questions about where the dogs had gone. I didn’t have the ability to answer those questions.”

Lemon said in a statement that while school board members and the dog’s owners had been notified, the board would improve communication with school families in the future.

Logan believes the program is being canceled at a time when it is sorely needed.

“In a time when we are losing resources and struggling with mental health, these dogs provide consistency, comfort and care,” she said.

“There’s no downside,” she continued. “This is a free, no-liability program.”

Lemon says student mental health is a key priority for the Waterloo Region District School Board.

In a news release, the Sheppard Public School Board is calling on parents, community members and local organizations to express their support by writing or calling the school board.

Parents and the school council have created an online petition.

They will present the issue to WRDSB at a board meeting on Nov. 11 at 7 p.m. The meeting will take place at the WRDSB Education Center in Kitchener.