Volunteering at a shelter

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post about volunteering at a shelter if you couldn’t have a dog. Well, I took my own advice and spent my first day as a volunteer at a local shelter. This was not the first time I had ever volunteered at a shelter, just the first time I had done so in the town where we now live.

The shelter I chose to volunteer with is a no-kill dog only shelter. They don’t take dogs from the public; they rescue dogs that are in good health, but are on death row at the county animal shelter. There are currently nine dogs on site. One of these dogs, a sweet border collie mix, joined their little family today.

I started this week, going in a couple of mornings a week. We get there before the shelter opens, take the dogs out of their indoor kennels and put them in the play area. Then we clean their kennels, get them fresh water and their food, and put them back indoors. Once they’ve been fed, they go out to their outdoor kennels. During the day, the dogs are alternated for office time and play time. They are fed again in the afternoon, with more play time, before being put to bed for the night. Other volunteers arrive early in the morning and later at night to walk the dogs.

While I was there, the city animal shelter called to see if they’d come look at this dog that had been at their shelter for three months. The county shelter was overrun with dogs, and they needed to ‘thin’ out their population. The administrators went over to the shelter, looked at the dog, and were back with pup in hand about 30 minutes later.

I like the fact that it’s a small facility, and that they rescue healthy dogs from euthanasia. They treat their volunteers well, and their dogs even better. I’ve volunteered at other shelters in the past, where they don’t give the humans the time of day.  I understand that you’re there for the animals, but the humans should be treated just as well as the animals. Anyway, if you’re considering becoming a volunteer, take the step and give your local shelter a call. Chances are they need the help, and you will have a rewarding experience.

Photo credit: Superfem via Flickr

August 5th, 2009 by Beth VanHoose | Posted in Dog Stories | (0)