Wow, is that for real!

I'm going to keep this blog short and sweet and skip all of the crap about cleaning. I know that it is a good portion of what we do here but I know it gets pretty repetitive when you read it every day and for me when I actually do it every day then come home and write about it.

Once the doors opened I was once again expecting a crowd since we still had our little ten week old poodle puppy up for adoption. The reason she didn't go yesterday is because our policy states that everyone in the household has to meet the animal. This can be difficult sometime when an animal becomes available during the week and there are several people who either work or go to school that are unable to come in. We did have a lot of really good families come in to meet but in the end it's the one that fits best that will ultimately get this new addition to their family. I do have to say I felt really bad for a young girl that came in with their mom and spent a good amount of time with the dog just for us to tell them that they cannot adopt until their father meets as well. I know it sounds a little cruel but there are reasons for our policy and we just want to make sure that this is going to be the perfect fit that will last a lifetime.

I was actually surprised how slow it was today which meant that I got to hang out with some animals until I was called to help out with a showing. I ended up having to use my Spanish to get rental agreement. The tough part is, I don't speak that much Spanish but I can get by. Eventually I got that the family could have the second dog and the adoption was a go. I just hope my interpretation was right and this dog doesn't get returned.

Closing out the day we had gotten a new bunnie relinquished to us. This are few and far between but this rabbit was especially sweet when I petted him in his cage. The big surprise came when I pulled him out and learned that we needed to trim his nails. I have never seen anything like this and I have to say I was shocked to see an animal go neglected in this way. I don't want to go on a rant but at least the animal is in our care now and hopefully a little more comfortable. Here is a picture so you can see for your self.

I'll be writing in a few more times this week because I am doubling up on shifts to take a nice holiday with my family. Thanks again for all who read and of course a special thanks to all who help out in shelters.

A trend I like to see

I like starting my day out knowing that you have a full staff and that there are no worries about getting all of the morning cleaning done. Of course since we got in a large group of new dogs I was lazy and signed up for cats and rabbits again. I know, I know, I actually feel a little guilty about not stepping up but every once in a while I like to steer away from lots of poop.

Again the cats were a breeze to clean up in the morning and there was plenty of time to make it over to the rabbitat where another staff member had already started cleaning. Like I said before, it's nice having a full staff and know that you aren't going to be in a rush to get everything finished in time for opening. After the rabbits were done we quickly knocked out the laundry, dishes, and garbage with time to spare.

After our morning meeting it was time to hit the ground running. Today it was decided that we were all going to pay particular attention to the special needs dogs and work on making them more adoptable. Another staff member and myself decided to hang out with our crazy puppy Waylin who we have been working hard on making more adoptable and of course more socialized. We ended up grabbing a new arrival named Mollie who we heard got along great with him and went down to one of the large play yards. It ended up being a half hour long play session where both dogs had a blast and never really got out of control. It was good to see that there are dogs that this little puppy can get along with and it gives me hope of finding him not only a new home but maybe a sibling as well. Here's a picture of the ruckus below.

After logging our experience with the two dogs in a folder to make sure we are monitoring progress I learned of another showing with a truly long term animal in the shelter. The showing was with Kissy our overweight cat who has graced us with her presence for the last year. There are a lot of factors that play in to an animal staying here for so long including age, breed, and of course looks. All of these combined made it difficult for people to look past and see the animal that the entire staff fell in love with. In any case, that perfect household came along and Kissy was exactly what they were looking for. I also think people in general feel good about adopting an animal that has been in a shelter for so long, it's really a win win situation. Anyways, I digress, Kissy got adopted! I hope that the trend continues and all of our older guys get to find their forever homes soon as well.

Closing out the day we had a group of Kids Community Service volunteers come into the shelter to help out. This is the program that helps educate people on what a shelter really does and how it benefits the community and of course the animals. Once again, working on as many things as possible to make sure that we are doing our part to help out the animals in the long run. Thanks for reading everyone and as Bob Barker always said, "remember to have your pets spayed or neutered".

Great way to end the day

I got to work early today and when that happens I take my pick at what I want to clean. Since it was a little chilly out I took the low road and went for the cats and rabbits. I was surprised to see how few cats there actually were in the cattery due to all of the adoptions that have taken place in the past week or so.

It was quite easy work to get all of the cats fed and their litter boxes changed. Once I was finished I headed over to the rabbitat to get started there. I had almost forgotten that one of the bunnies had been adopted yesterday as well. I have been at the shelter for a little while now and this is the first time that I am seeing a steady flow of adoptions, not sure why but I will take it with a big smile on my face.

Once all of the animals were fed and taken care of this morning it was time for the garbage, laundry, and of course dishes. I was surprised to see very little of everything, once again because we have had so many adoptions recently there are fewer things to pick up after them.

The doors opened and of course we were pretty slow. Rather than make the day pass by slow everyone hit the ground running, especially because we had to prepare for the arrival of eleven new second chance dogs. I started by getting the kitchen organized while other staff members disinfected the runs the new dogs would go to along with changing out all of their poop buckets. In addition to all of this we had to set up the six kennels where all of the new guys were to be held.

While all of this was going on there were a few showings and my was with a Kelly, our resident Grandma. It was a good showing with a woman who recently adopted from us and was looking to add to her flock. Kelly's age and medical concerns didn't bother the woman too much but she wanted to make sure that both dogs got along. Since she lived so close she headed home to get her "daughter" and was back in a flash. The showing went alright, they ignored each other more than anything. Unfortunately the woman wasn't all that thrilled about how things went and said she would think about it.

Later in the day the front desk was a little short handed so periodically kennel staff would go up there to help out. The first call I took was with a nice English woman once again asking about Kelly. I answered her questions and explained everything that I could, all I can say is I was amazed at how much attention our little old lady was getting.

Of course this was the only call that put a smile on my face while I was up at the front desk. I covered a lunch up there and was pretty surprised at some of the questions that were thrown my way via phone calls. The first was a woman who asked what she should do because her dog had eaten a lot of gummy worms and lactose pills. Besides not being qualified to answer this the phone seemed to be ringing off the hook with other questions that needed to be directed elsewhere. Once I got all of the lined answered I told the woman she should call her vet and that we weren't qualified to give her advice, she then said she thought she was calling the vet. That was enough excitement for me and thank goodness our front desk associate was back to take it over, I think I'll stick to the dogs.

Later in the afternoon all of the dogs arrived and of course everyone had to go and look. In addition to these eleven we also got number twelve from another shelter. Now this girl looks like something straight out of a comic book. Check out the picture for yourself. All of the new dogs seem very friendly and it's good to have a full house again. I know it's easier to clean up after less dogs but I really feel bad knowing that we have the space and ability to take care of more dogs.

Closing out my day the English woman I had spoken to earlier in the day had come in with her husband to take a look at Kelly. I went over their application and the thought came to my mind that I wish all of them looked like this. They were looking for a mellow dog that would get along with visitors and not be nippy. They didn't have any children and treated their animals as such. Once in the showing they absolutely fell in love. I left them alone for a bit and came back to Kelly laying on the woman's lap. It was a go! I couldn't have ended the day in a better way. I am so happy that our little Grandma found the perfect home and a family that will enjoy having a wonderful senior pet.

Thanks for reading everyone and if you aren't already following I would appreciate the support. The more education we can spread about these wonderful shelter animals the better. I look forward to your comments.

Signs of life

I love going into work after having a few days off and seeing which animals have gotten adopted. In the past I would stay up to date by checking the web but lately I've been waiting to see the surprises when I go in. Today was a good one to start my morning, Laverne and Shirley, a bonded pair of young cats had gotten adopted. On top of that a spunky little dog named Luigi got to go home as well. I've found that no matter how much I'm not looking forward to my week, the minute I learn of the adoptions my optimism comes back.

And on to the day, all be it a short one. I started by signing up for the East and West dogs, I had a good feeling that there weren't going to be to many messes on this side of the shelter. Of course when I assume I usually get proven wrong. After scooping all of the poop, scrubbing down the kennels, disinfecting a few, and drying out the rest I got all of their food down. I made sure I got the special diets done for our "slightly overweight" dogs and started to bring them back up from their breaks. Once they were all up I headed back to our kitchen to sign up for some daily chores.

I ended up taking the garbage out since everyone else had already gotten on top of everything else. Once that was done the day was beginning. There were a few showings early on but mine didn't come for a while. In the mean time I decided to take a look at our disinfecting spray nozzles that I learned were pumping out about 12 times as much as they should be. Not sure if breathing in the stuff is healthy but at least we shouldn't have to order it as much now.

On to my one showing of the day! The initial application had a new puppy listed but after reading over everything we thought it might not be the best fit. Reason being is they have two small children and the reason they gave up their last dog was because it kept biting. Pretty sure a young puppy who is teething will probably do the same thing. With that being said they wanted to take a look at Shaq, our old guy who got a reprieve a month ago. I was ready to send him home when I finished looking at the profile and noticed that they might get a cat in the next year, this was unfortunate because when you open Shaq's profile you see in big all caps letters "WILL KILL CATS!". I'm glad the people were understanding and still were interested in finding that "right" dog.

I decided next to show them the two ends of the spectrum when it comes to older dogs. Of course I am showing them two that get along with children. The two I showed them were T.J. and Kelly. Both ranged in ages from six to eleven with the energy level easily seen. When I showed them the energy level of T.J. they said it probably wouldn't be a good fit, they were looking for something a little mellower. I then decided to show them grandma Kelly, our eleven year old Schnauzer. They seemed like they really liked her and would have to discuss some things but I was glad that they were open to looking at a wide variety of dogs rather than just a puppy. Hopefully they find the perfect fit and are able to take home one of these great animals.

That's it for today, I called it early for some personal reasons. At least now I can go into work tomorrow and see what surprise adoptions await. Thanks for reading everyone and I look forward to your comments.

Another day, crossing my fingers and hoping for another adoption.

Today I started with the dogs and I have to say, because of all of the recent adoptions there really aren't that many of them to clean. Mind you that doesn't mean the ones that are there didn't make a mess!

I was able to get all of the dogs taken care of rather quickly and back up to their kennels to eat just after ten. Of course that doesn't mean the cleaning is done. Next you have to make sure that all of the yards are scooped and also hosed out, don't want those flies hanging around. Once everything was done with the dogs I headed over to the rabbitat where I was met by another staff member. It's amazing when there are two of you how fast you can get things done.

Once all of the animals were looked after it was on to the daily do's of taking out the garbage, starting the laundry, and of course washing some dog dishes. Thank goodness for the staff we have because even before the doors opened we had finished everything.

With all of the kittens we currently have at the shelter it was no surprise that the showings kept on coming for them. Throughout the day it seemed there was always a kitten heading to their new home. Even though I wish it were the cats as well, we have so many kittens on foster waiting to get into the shelter so it is good that we are gaining a little more kennel space for the little guys.

My first "quasi" showing of the day was with one of the new second chance dogs that have been here a little over a week. I call it a quasi showing because I was actually leaving it up to one of the new guys and chiming in when necessary. The showing ended up going great and the new adoption counselor did his part very well. In the end the young gentleman ended up being the perfect home for our little Megabyte and the adoption was a go. I wish the little guy was able to go home now but because he still needs to be neutered it might not be until next week.

I had only one more showing the rest of the day and it was a father and his two young children who initially wanted to look at Waylin the puppy. The big problem that I see is that there are constantly grandchildren that visit the household and with the puppies current behavioral issues this might be a problem. In the end they completely understood and decided to take a look at Bobbie, a sweet 10 month old lab mix. They ended up falling in love and the match was perfect to say the least. The only problem is the mother still needs to come and meet. Luckily they were able to get a hold of her and they agreed that she will be in first thing tomorrow morning. I explained that we don't put holds on animals but because it was so late in the afternoon it should work out fine. Hopefully she shows up in the morning and this sweet little girl can find her new forever home.

Another day down and a few more adoptions to account for. Not sure it the shelter can be an economic gauge but things are definitely seeming on the up and up with all of the adoptions this past week. I truly hope that it continues because unfortunately there isn't a shortage of dogs that we can find homes for. Thanks for reading as always and I look forward to you comments everyone.

Staying busy all day long

Typical Monday's consist of playing catch up from the weekend and of course a whole lot of cleaning. Well, that is exactly how today started, especially since we were one staff member short. I began with cleaning cats today since I really don't know to many of our feline friends.

After a quick morning of scooping boxes and getting climbed all over I headed over to our isolation unit to take care of the sick guys, or rather one guy now since everyone else is back in the regular cattery. I did have one extra attendee today, she is a sweet cat that had been adopted about six months ago and was back because she ended up biting someone and had to go on quarantine. She seemed fine to me except for one thing, she was completely covered in poop! Now usually I am my selfish self and do nothing but complain about the smell but I really did feel bad for this cat, she was so scared that she really couldn't help herself. Because she is healthy we decided to set up a larger kennel in dog iso so she has some room to stretch her legs on her ten day sentence. Hopefully it flies by and she is able to go home in a flash.

Once all of the cats were finished I headed over to the rabbitat where I was met by a senior volunteer whom I always see at the shelter. She is a big bunnie fan but typically spends her time with the cats. Of course though I always feel that the rabbits never get out enough and explained to her that in the mornings, especially when we are short staffed, we just don't have the time to get them out to their runs. She was more than willing to help out though which put a smile on my face, these animals can never have enough love given to them.

Early on I was greeted by the same woman who had come in yesterday to visit with the schnauzer I like to call Grandma Kelly. This time though she brought her husband. They both absolutely love her but still have some concerns because their dog is a bit of a handful. After spending some time asking the right questions and seeing Kelly run around they came to the conclusion that once the holidays are over and they will not be traveling they will bring in their dog to meet. They don't want to do it now because in either case they don't want to bring her home now because they feel that they don't have the time at home to make her adjustment as easy as possible. I have to say, I really enjoy these types of showings, where you know whatever dog these families have, they are going to be well taken care of.

The rest of my day was spent trying to find a good mentor for a puppy named Walyn, who is a bit of a handful to say the least. He is absolutely the cutest thing with great kennel presence but when introducing him to other animals he ends up being a little to pushy and not taking direction well. Luckily we finally found a dog that he listened to, a seven month old male lab. They seemed to be doing great in the yard and it was good to know that this puppy could go home to a household with another dog, all be it the "right" dog.

Of course as soon as we find the puppy a play mate, the play mate and his sister get adopted out together. One of those bitter sweet moments, well, more sweet than bitter. While all of this was going on I was in another showing with a great family. They were looking at one of our second chance dogs named Turtle, a sweet old beagle. Luckily the family already had a beagle so I didn't need to explain to much of the breeds needs. We ended up doing an interaction and the pair got along great. Turtle can't go home yet because he still needs to be neutered, but come Thursday he should be in his new home.

Once again we have yet to catch up from the weekend, luckily thought most everything did get done today with the help of a solid staff and of course some great volunteers helping out. In the end all I can say is that we have actually run out of adoption signs, a first for me. Today I will be going home with a smile on my face.

Oh yeah, the picture up top is our blind little Annie with her new seeing eye collar. It looks funny and ridiculous but it actually helps her not bump her head into things. Thanks for reading everyone and if you're not already following on Facebook or Google I would really appreciate it, the more people are informed about the great animals at shelters the more we can save.

Coming back to a different place today

I truly enjoy coming back to work and finding out that absolutely no cleaning got done the day before for one simply reason, it means there were a lot of showings. Today was one of those days and I had no complaints. I found out that yesterday was a barrage of showings from the moment they opened the doors to the moment they shut them with an enormous amount of adoptions to show for it.

Just about every dog that was a "long termer" here got adopted yesterday, that's including Copernicus, Bogey, and even Hannah. I don't have all of the details on the adoptions just yet but I have no doubt that they all went to wonderful homes. On top of those three dogs there were probably a good six more from the new bunch that just came in as well as a few cats. For the staff yesterday I commend you for working so hard and like I said before, it was one of those days today where I like the place to be a mess.

Luckily we had a full staff and were able to catch up with everything in the shelter pretty quickly. Even though we caught up we still had a fair amount of showings today as well so tomorrow might need a little extra attention to the laundry.

My first showing was a continuation of one from yesterday. It was with a relinquished Jack Russel named Lexie. Originally when she came in we set pretty high ages for family members just because of her issues with restraint and her mouthiness, but because she has gotten better we were opening up a few more age groups. I start with this because the biggest issue the adoption counselor saw yesterday is the same thing that I saw today, that the family has a nine year old son and if not properly informed Lexie could become a bit of a handful. Luckily the family was very receptive and understanding of Lexie and after a good while in the showing everyone knew it was the right fit. Not sure what it is about this weekend but we will soon be an empty shelter once again waiting for some new arrivals, you can't see my face right now but there is a huge smile on it.

The rest of the day was pretty steady with a few more dog showings and a lot of kitten showings. There were a total of three kittens that got to go home today and there would have been more if we had allowed them to. The biggest issue with kittens is denying potential adopters if they plan on declawing or making the cat an indoor/outdoor one, this immediately disqualifies them.

My last showing of the day was with a very nice woman who came to look at Kelly, our resident grandma Schnauzer. The woman had heard about the dog from a friend who volunteers at the shelter and had to come and meet her. She immediately fell in love but there were a few concerns, mainly with the woman's dog at home who she felt my corrupt our Kelly. I explained to her the adoption process and how we wouldn't send home an animal if everyone didn't get along and she was very receptive to this. Hopefully she will be back soon to do a dog introduction and we can say goodbye to our favorite little Schnauzer.

I was happy to come into work today and learn of all the adoptions, of course it was a little bitter sweet because I never got to say goodbye but that's just me being selfish. I love seeing empty kennels as well because I know there is no shortage of dogs that are waiting to get into our shelter, I just hope some day that places like this humane society aren't needed because every animal will have a home of their own. Thanks for reading everyone and keep your fingers crossed for Kelly!