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Getting Started as an Animal Shelter Volunteer · The Animal Advocate

0:00
Hey there. Welcome to the animal advocate. I'm so
0:03
glad you're here. You know that feeling when you're scrolling through social
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media and you see a post from your local shelter? Maybe one
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with a big headed dog or a senior cat still
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waiting for a home after months, and something inside
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you whispers, I should help. But
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then you don't. It's not because you don't care.
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You're listening to this podcast after all. It's because
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something gets in the way. Maybe it's time.
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How could you possibly fit one more commitment into your already
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overflowing schedule? Maybe it's fear of emotional
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attachment or having your heart broken. Or maybe
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it's something as simple as not knowing what to expect when you walk through
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those shelter doors for the first time, just like the fear lots of
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people have of walking into any crowded room alone.
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Here's what I've noticed. The gap between wanting to
1:01
help and actually helping often comes down to
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uncertainty, not unwillingness.
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Today, we're gonna close that gap together.
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Welcome to The Animal Advocate, where we arm animal
1:18
lovers with the information and inspiration you need to become
1:22
effective advocates. I'm your host, Penny Ellison, and
1:26
I've taught animal law and advocacy at the University of Pennsylvania
1:30
since 02/2006. If you've ever thought
1:33
someone should do something about that, I'm here to guide you on
1:37
your journey to being that someone. You can find
1:41
us on the web at animaladvocacyacademy.com.
1:45
And that's where you'll find show notes and resources, and you can
1:49
send us your comments on episodes and ideas for topics you'd like
1:53
to hear on future shows. So on to today's
1:56
topic.
2:03
On today's episode, we're talking to Megan, a volunteer
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for, I think, seventeen years at the Pennsylvania SPCA.
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She's not a professional dog trainer. She doesn't have a trust
2:14
fund that gives her unlimited free time. She works
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full time, has her own family obligations and her own
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pets, and the same twenty four hours in a day that you and I
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have. What she's going to share today isn't anything
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extraordinary or earth shattering, and that's exactly what makes it
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valuable. The most effective shelter volunteers aren't
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superhuman. They're just like you and me. They're people
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who simply showed up, found a way they could contribute,
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and kept coming back. When she's at the shelter, Megan can
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usually be found walking dogs, but shelters need all kinds
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of help, including some that has nothing to do with directly
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handling animals. Can you take decent photographs?
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Shelters desperately need better adoption photos.
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Can you create a spreadsheet and organize names and times
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of people who volunteered to work an event? Can you do
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laundry? The animals aren't picky. Even if you can't
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fold a fitted sheet like Martha Stewart, you're still a %
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qualified to wash their bedding. And the smallest contributions
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compound. One volunteer who interacts with shelter
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animals for just two hours a week gives those
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animals a hundred and four hours of human connection and
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exercise every year. That matters.
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And just think, if your shelter had 10 more people willing to do
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that, life changing. And all of those people have
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their own networks that bring attention to the animals and help them
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find homes. And, yes, there will be sad moments.
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I won't pretend otherwise. But Negan will tell you, as
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will almost every other shelter volunteer I've spoken with, that
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the moments of joy and progress and eventual adoptions
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more than offset the sad ones. The secret
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isn't avoiding emotional connection. It's
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finding perspective. What if the real risk
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isn't getting too attached or not having enough time?
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What if the real risk is missing the opportunity to
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be part of something meaningful, something that actually moves the
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needle for animals in your community? The animal welfare
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world has a saying. Saving one animal won't change the
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world, but it'll change the world for that one animal.
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And that's just not a meaningless slogan. It's the daily
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reality of shelter volunteering. If you can only
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take out five dogs out of maybe the hundred that are there,
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you helped those five, and they're better off because you showed
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up. And if more and more people set aside just
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a few hours, the quality of life in that shelter
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transforms. So if you've been hesitating,
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if you've been waiting for the perfect moment when you have more
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time or more emotional fortitude, Today's
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conversation is especially for you. The door to your
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local shelter isn't nearly as heavy as it might seem from the
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outside, and pushing it open might just be one of
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the most consequential small actions of your life.
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So here's my interview with one inspiring volunteer.
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Welcome to the podcast, Megan. Thank you so much for joining us. Thank you
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for having me. So you've been volunteering
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for how many years now? I think I mean, I'm
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gonna say fifteen, fifteen, but it might be closer to seventeen, if I'm
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being more honest about my age, than 17. Oh my
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goodness. A long time. Really long time. So that must
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mean you're getting something out of it. So let let's go back to the
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beginning and say, what made you first walk through the shelter
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doors? Because I think a lot of people find that intimidating. I was
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lucky. My best friend and I had the idea together that we
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would start volunteering, and we were like, alright. Let's
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just look it up. And we found orientation. Okay. We're gonna go to
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this. So we went, and we basically just
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kept going together. And the second time I
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went, I found a dog I really liked. So then I kept wanting to go
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back to the dog that I met, that I really liked, and I was like,
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I have to see what she's doing. I have to do this. And, you
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know, I never wanted to stop because eventually, one dog will get
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adopted, but you find another one that you then bond with too, and you just
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kinda keep that cycle going. That makes sense. That's like an individual
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relationship. Yeah. I'm not going back generally to volunteer. I need to see this
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dog. Yes. That's because he's he or she is counting on you.
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Mhmm. That's great. So like I said, a lot of people, I
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think, find it intimidating to go to a shelter to volunteer.
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So it sounds like for most shelters, I think you can fill out an application
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online. Everybody's got their orientation and training.
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And even if you don't have a friend, you're probably going through that with a
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group of newbies Yes. That know as little as you
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do. So it sounds like you love dogs, but walk me
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through the options. If you started to volunteer at the shelter,
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what are all the different things volunteers can do? I would say a lot of
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people come in, and their immediate thing is, I wanna be a dog handler. I
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wanna walk dogs. I wanna play with dogs. And then once you get your
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feet wet a little bit, you realize that volunteering
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encompasses a lot of different things. I'm not a person that likes to
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do events, but people love events. So there are volunteers that
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only do event work. They bring a dog to an event. They talk about the
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organization. That's what they really like. Other people enjoy making
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enrichment where that is super fulfilling because these
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animals need that to help their days. And making
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enrichment is stuffing tongues with treats and and food and Yeah.
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Just even thinking about different ways to do that. We've had people
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that come that make it their mission to find the coolest
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way to do enrichment. And we'll have something so
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little as broth with fruit in it. But for a dog that has a lot
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of stress and anxiety, to lick something slowly throughout the
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day gives them a lot of peace of mind. Some people wanna
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come in and do cats. They'll do just cat work.
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So there is a lot of different things you can do. And your
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schedule is pretty much your own, or do you have to sign up for specific
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shifts? I made my own schedule there that I think
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most people do. I think when you first start coming in, you're like, I'm gonna
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be here this day from this hour to this hour. And then as you're more
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into it, you're like, I might just come for two hours today just to take
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out this one specific animal that I know needs it, and that's
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okay too. You can make it your own, which is why volunteering
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is really a beautiful thing because it can be whatever you want it to be.
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That is so great. And that that is exactly, you know, music
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to my ears because I think you work for a living. I should
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point that out. You're you're not someone who volunteers for a living. You're fitting
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volunteering in around a family and a job. And so
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the people think, oh, you know, what if I can't come every Tuesday and
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Thursday? But, you know, that's okay. You can give what you can give. Mhmm.
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That's great. Let's talk about the experience and a little bit more
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specificity. Tell me about a day when you went home and
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you just couldn't stop smiling. One of those shelter stories that
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makes all the hard stuff worth it. I think the one that
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would stick out to me the most is
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actually pretty recently. We had a dog that was just struggling so much in his
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kennel, and, you know, you look at this animal in a kennel
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setting, and they don't always look happy. They look
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really sad and depressed. And once I took him out, I
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realized, oh my gosh. He's dog friendly. Wow. He
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likes everyone. He likes the car. He's so
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happy. And after that day, we did some dog work with
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him and all these different types of stuff, and he ended up going to foster
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that night. We took this chance where we're like, oh, we don't really know how
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his dog test is gonna be, but he ended up rocking it and doing
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so well that a foster just happened to reach out that day that had a
10:27
dog, and he was able to go right into their home.
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That is so great because most people that have a big enough heart
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to foster already have pets in the home. Yes. So it's really hard
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to find a foster for a dog who can't be placed with other pets. So
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the fact that you found out and were able to say, hey.
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He he would be okay in your house. That's such a big step. Yeah.
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That's great. Don't you often make TV appearances also on behalf of the
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shelters, thinking of things people can do? I will do that too.
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I do it mostly because if there's a dog that I think
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that the particular audience who views that channel will
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be interested in, then I wanna do it. Because I'm like, you know what? I
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know they're gonna show really well. And I think that's also the beauty of
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volunteering is if you can show that you could
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handle taking on something like that and be responsible with it, then,
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you know, usually you're gonna be allowed to do it because it helps showcase these
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animals in a really good light. And an animal is always going to look better
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with a person that they love as opposed to someone that they
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don't know as well bringing them on a channel. The relationships are huge.
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That gives all the difference. That's great that they have that opportunity. Do you
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find that the dogs that get to make the TV appearances
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often have good luck getting adopted then? Yes. I would say it's
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probably like a seventy, thirty percentage wise. Well, that's
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great. That's my guesstimate. Yeah. And even that 30, sometimes, maybe they don't get
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adopted, but they go to foster. Mhmm. Or even that, it just gives
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them more positive notes in their bios and things like that,
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which all help. That's true. And you can use the video online to
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promote them and keep sharing, and it might not come right after the TV
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appearance, but it it still gives them more exposure. Not to mention a day out,
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which is also cool. Definitely. Very important. Because I think you you
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alluded to earlier, a lot of the dogs don't show very
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well in a kennel. No. So you need to get them out of that
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environment, and that's that's where volunteers come in so handy. Do
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you you take dogs outside to meet other people?
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When you volunteer, you're not necessarily allowed to let a dog meet people
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in the public unless it's at an event specifically. But
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when you can take a dog, we call them off sites. It could be to
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a park. It could be a ride in your car. It can
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be to get ice cream. It can be on a long hike. All
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these different types of things where you can even just see how they observe
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people, how they observe other dogs. Did they see birds
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or a feral cat? There are a lot of different things that can give you
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good hindsight in, like, how alright. I wasn't really thinking about that then, and now
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I can see, okay. In the future, this could work out.
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Yes. He saw strangers and he was okay. Or you had that
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accidental cat test because one ran by. That's cool. Yes. An accidental cat test,
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I've definitely had happened quite a few times. I've had an accidental dog test before.
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So, you know, you have to obviously be on your toes when you do
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things like that. But, again, that I think is what makes volunteering a little
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bit easier because as a volunteer, you're able to
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have more leeway in your day. A staff member can't say, oh, I wanna go
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take a dog to the park today. It doesn't really work like that. But we
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can. We can do that. Yeah. Their days are already overly full.
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Yes. So that's great. And you take them in, and it just serves such a
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variety of purposes because, you know, they're getting distressed. You're
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learning more about them. You might be getting great pictures of
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them, and maybe they're wearing a vest or something that shows people, hey. I'm
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available for adoption. Let's change gears a little bit and talk
13:56
about emotional roller coaster because, you know,
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we talked about great times, but I know the roller coaster is real because
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sometimes aren't that great. And how do you handle those days
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when you just either wanna adopt all the animals or
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go cry in your car? For me, I'm able
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to kind of change my day based on what's happening at that
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exact moment. There are times that and I think most people that volunteer
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will say since COVID, it been a lot more frustrating because
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there's economic times are harder for people. And so there's a lot
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more surrenders and a lot more returns, and that will beat you down as
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a volunteer because you're just thinking to yourself, oh my gosh, all this work to
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get them adopted and they're back, And a lot of times through no fault of
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their own, which can be incredibly hard to just hear
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and take, and you see this animal that left so happy now back in their
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kennel, and that's really difficult. So for me, I
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just try to be like, okay. When I come in today, maybe I'm just
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gonna focus on three dogs that I know I can do this with
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and then start fresh, just to not overwhelm myself. Well, you must
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have figured out a way to deal with it if you've been doing it for
15:06
seventeen years. Yes. Yeah. And also, I think too,
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when you have a feeling or an opinion about something,
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don't be afraid to vocalize that. You know? Talk to other volunteers
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like, hey. Are you kinda feeling like a little bit frustrated with this or that?
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It just helps because you have a community when you're there. You are part
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of this giant family. It might be dysfunctional sometimes, but it is this
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giant family of people that come from all different walks of life, all
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different beliefs, but you're all there for the same reason. Mhmm.
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And being able just to talk with other people about how you're feeling helps.
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That's great advice. And it also I don't know exactly how old you are, but
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you've been volunteering for almost half your life. Yes. How do you think volunteering
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has changed your life or you as a person? I think
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I'm a lot more. I became an empath
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for sure. I have more of a tougher exterior where I do not show
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a ton of emotion. It takes a lot to get me upset, but
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volunteering, I feel like I can look at a person and see how they're feeling
16:07
about that situation. I just definitely think it helped me in a
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lot more aspects of my life than just volunteering.
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Well, certainly, learning about dog behavior means you become very conscious of
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nonverbal communication, right, and what those cues are, and then you can
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apply that to people. Yes. What do you think is the thing about
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shelter volunteering that surprises you or that
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nobody talks about? Something unexpected. I think there's
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a couple different things. I think one of the things that surprised me the
16:37
most, and I've definitely seen this happen a lot, is people come to volunteer
16:41
and then they meet the dog that they've always wanted, adopt the dog, and then
16:45
you don't ever see them again as a volunteer. That always was kind of like,
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oh. Now, of course, you're very happy that the dog is now adopted in a
16:52
home, but you're like, but you were a really good volunteer. We miss you. You
16:55
know? Things like that. And I guess even just for me,
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when people start and they can't keep it
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going, I'm always like, how did they stop? I haven't been able to stop. Now
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I understand that your life changes and people move. People have babies and they have
17:09
things that change. But I always wonder that. It does always surprise me
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because it's almost just like it's part of who I am now at this
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point. It's not just the thing I do. It's part of who I am as
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a person. I completely agree that once once it gets
17:23
inside you, it's hard to see how somebody could walk away.
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But definitely understand that, you know, people that people have
17:31
children or their life changes in such a way or but I think that's why
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it's important to stress that your volunteering might change, but it doesn't
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mean you still can't help. Maybe you can't come to the shoulder, but you could
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foster an animal. Maybe you could you mentioned go to an adoption event sometimes
17:45
because they often need have more bodies than they or need more bodies than they
17:49
have. Yes. Definitely. So, yeah, for the person who's listening
17:52
right now who's thinking, I could do this, but they're also
17:56
still intimidated, what's your best advice to get
18:00
them from thinking about it to actually showing up? I would say
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find your group of volunteer friends because
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it gives you more confidence when you first start if you have someone that you
18:12
know you can ask for help. We have a volunteer coordinator, of course, that
18:16
helps us. She's our manager, and we go to her. But on a day to
18:19
day, if you're there, if you know you have your friend that's gonna be there
18:23
with you on a Sunday, if you wanna maybe take out a more challenging animal
18:27
for the first time, you have your friend that can back you up. You just
18:30
I think it helps build your confidence in animal
18:34
handling, like, things of that nature. You're just so like, oh, okay. Well, I have
18:37
my groups of friends. I can do this group. Okay. I feel good. It just
18:40
helps you. That helped me tremendously. I think that's great advice
18:44
because it's also, you know, obviously safety first And, you know, having
18:48
friends around that you could that you can grab in case you need them
18:52
or ask them for advice is a wonderful tip. And, also, it could keep you
18:56
going, you know? It really does. You call and say, I'm gonna be there at
18:59
five. You know, you wanna walk some dogs and then have margaritas or something, and
19:02
then, you know, give Yes. Definitely. The big, big thing. Yes.
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I really appreciate your joining us, Megan, because I think there are a lot of
19:11
people out there that think they would like to help but just need some push
19:15
to get over that hurdle of walking in the door, and and I think you
19:18
really helped them do that. Thank you. Alright. Take care. Thanks,
19:21
Penny. Bye. Bye.
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Phew. Well, that sure made me wanna go to the shelter.
19:29
I hope everything Megan shared helped you to realize that you
19:33
can do this. There's a place for everyone. There's probably
19:37
even more than one shelter or rescue in your area that you can
19:41
try on for size. Just get in the game. Can you
19:44
guess what our Be the Change segment is this week? Of course you
19:48
can. Get on it. Find out when the next
19:52
volunteer orientation is at your local shelter. Sign up
19:55
with a friend or by yourself, and find your niche. The
20:00
animals are waiting.
20:05
That's it for today. The animal advocate podcast is brought
20:09
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live with compassion.