The canine stars of the Essex Dog Display Team will be on their best behaviour next week when representatives from South Korean electrical giants Samsung come to Brentwood.

The company hopes to set up its own display team in South Korea, and is flying a group over to bone up on just how to teach an old dog new tricks.

A party of six, including an interpreter, will spend a week at the Essex Dog Training Centre, in Doddinghurst Road, and if all goes to plan a group from the centre will fly out to Korea next year.

Samsung has a long standing policy of promoting responsible dog ownership in the far east, and in South Korea it is responsible for the funding, training and breeding programmes of several organisations, including Guide Dogs for the Blind and the Search and Rescue Dog Centre.

It has also been one of the main sponsors of Cruft's Dog Show for the past 10 years.

Samsung's external affairs manager for the UK, Esther Porta, said: "We are very aware of the public's perception of the treatment of animals in the Far East, which is why Samsung have spent many years educating adults and children about their responsibilities towards animal welfare. "For some time now, we have been looking into forming a dog display team in South Korea that can take the message further afield.

"In our quest, one name that constantly cropped up as the 'top' team was The Essex Dog Training Centre and Display Team.

"We have seen this team in action at Cruft's and admire them greatly, which is why we asked for their advice and guidance."

Roy Dyer, display team director at the centre, said he was delighted that they had been chosen from the tens of thousands of dog display teams across the world.

Roy said: "I did know of Samsung's work in animal welfare and I congratulate them on their wonderful efforts.

"A programme of activities has been arranged which will demonstrate our techniques in dog training, and will include training with children, and with dogs with serious aggression problems, and of course, the main aim of how to build a successful display team.

"Most dogs in Korea are quite small, so it will be interesting to see how our guests handle the bigger, more aggressive dogs."

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