Latest / The Animal Advocate / How to Help Animal Shelters on Social Media: Do's and Don'ts from Shelter Staff

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How to Help Animal Shelters on Social Media: Do's and Don'ts from Shelter Staff · The Animal Advocate

• 0:01
  If you follow your local shelter on social media, you have the
• 0:05
  power to save lives. Seriously, A well
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  timed share can connect an animal with their perfect family. A
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  thoughtful comment can boost a post to thousands of people.
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  Your engagement can make the difference between an animal going home
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  today or spending another night in a kennel. But
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  I have to say, not all engagement helps equally.
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  Some of it actually makes things harder for the shelter staff and ends up being
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  counterproductive. So today I want to share
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  how you can be the most effective online advocate possible
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  for your local shelter, how to use social media in ways that
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  truly help, and what to avoid so you don't accidentally
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  make their jobs harder.
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  Welcome to the Animal Advocate where we arm animal
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  lovers with the information and inspiration you need to become
• 0:57
  effective advocates. I'm your host Penny Ellison,
• 1:01
  and I've taught animal law and advocacy at the University of Pennsylvania
• 1:05
  since 2006. If you've ever thought
• 1:08
  someone should do. Something about that, I'm here to guide. You
• 1:12
  on your journey to being that someone. You can
• 1:16
  find us on the web@animaladvocacyacademy.com
• 1:20
  and that's where you'll find show notes and resources and you can
• 1:24
  send us your comments on episodes and ideas for topics you'd like to
• 1:28
  hear on future shows. So onto today's
• 1:31
  topic.
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  Social media has created some of the most powerful tools we've ever had to
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  help shelter animals. Unlike years ago when people had to
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  come into the shelter to meet animals, people can see and get to
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  know animals even if they don't think they'd feel comfortable coming to the
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  shelter. They can follow individual stories,
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  learn about needs in real time, and step forward to
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  foster, adopt, donate or volunteer
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  because a post crossed their feed at the right moment.
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  A lot of animals are alive today because of that visibility.
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  Shelters rely on social media. Volunteers rely on
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  it, advocates rely on it used well,
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  it expands reach, mobilizes resources, and
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  connects animals with people who can help.
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  Now, if you listened last week you might remember that I surveyed
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  volunteer coordinators about what jobs they really wished they had
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  more help with other than animal handling. The
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  response was really helpful. So this week I wanted to hear from the
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  people running shelter social media accounts. I asked them
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  what kinds of engagements help them most and what kinds of comments
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  and behaviors, even from well meaning people, make
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  their jobs harder. The response was immediate and
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  generous. Within hours I had shelter staff from around
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  the country sharing insights about what works and what
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  doesn't. And here's what became clear the difference
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  between helpful engagement and unhelpful Engagement
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  often comes down to just a few simple adjustments in how we interact.
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  So I guess that's the mediator in me. I was a mediator for a very
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  long time. I see the view of the well meaning volunteers
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  and members of the public and I see the shelter staff's view
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  and I want you to see both. So let me share what they
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  told me and what I've witnessed myself over about 14 years
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  of being involved in sheltering online and in person.
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  Not to criticize anyone, but to help you become the most effective
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  advocate possible for the animals in your community.
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  I'm going to walk these through as paired tips, the
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  helpful approach and the not so helpful one so you
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  can see exactly what makes the difference. So
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  first up, what do you do when you love an animal that you see but
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  you can't adopt? Well, do this.
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  Be honest and specific about how you can help. Say I wish I could take
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  this one home, but he looks like a great find. So I'm sharing to
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  my network or I can't adopt, but I'm making a donation
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  in their honor and I hope you do too.
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  What's the Don't. Don't comment
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  hastily. I'll take him or I'm on my way to get him.
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  When you can't adopt or foster, I'm surprised how much this
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  happens. And when people comment like that, real potential
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  adopters scroll by assuming the animal is already
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  spoken for, the post loses momentum with people who could help.
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  And when staff follows up privately and learns you can't actually take the
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  animal, the damage is already done.
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  Next one before you comment,
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  do read the entire post.
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  Before commenting, take 30 seconds to see if your question
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  is already answered. If it is, post something
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  else supportive instead. Don't
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  don't ask questions that are already answered in the post. When
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  people ask about things that are clearly stated, like whether the dog
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  is dog friendly, what they weigh, where they're located,
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  it signals to the algorithm and to potential adopters that something's unclear.
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  When it's not, Shelter staff post four, five,
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  six times a day, sometimes with all of that key information
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  usually included. So read it first.
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  Cross posting and tagging other organizations.
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  What you should do in this situation? What's your
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  due? If you see an animal in a distant shelter,
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  you can share their post directly to your network. You can tag people
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  you know personally who might be able to adopt or foster.
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  That reaches potential adopters. What not to
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  do don't forward urgent animals from other
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  shelters to your local shelter's social media,
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  or tag them to help the staff seeing your tag
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  aren't in charge of transfers, and the people who are in charge are already
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  doing everything they can. Shelters being tagged
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  are often and usually already full. And
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  don't blindly tag long lists of rescues you have no
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  relationship with. That's called cross posting,
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  and it's an outdated practice that doesn't work here in
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  Philadelphia. If a shelter is sharing an animal publicly,
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  they've already reached out to their rescue partners. And
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  remember, most posture based rescues, they're run by volunteers,
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  so they don't need to spend their day scanning through tags for animals they
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  already know about and don't have foster homes for.
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  Cross posting like this just creates noise, not solutions.
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  So share to people who can adopt, not to organizations that
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  are already overwhelmed. Next up,
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  strategic sharing versus Echo chamber sharing.
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  Do this. Share to audiences who can actually take
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  action. Post to neighborhood groups where people might be looking to
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  adopt. Tag friends who've talked about wanting a
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  pet. Think about who will see it and whether they can actually help.
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  What not to do don't share photos of urgent
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  animals on Facebook pages that are just long lists of shares of
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  animals. That's an echo chamber. It may make you
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  feel good, but it doesn't increase visibility for that animal.
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  Next, when you have concerns about an animal
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  or a shelter policy, what should you do? Well,
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  I'd tell you to do this. Reach out to staff
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  privately. Ask sincere questions with curiosity.
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  If you see something that concerns you, contact the shelter to understand
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  what's happening. Don't air complaints or
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  concerns publicly in the comments where they might discourage
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  potential adopters. Remember that shelter posts
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  are marketing. They're probably their most important form of
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  marketing. They're trying to find homes for animals.
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  Personal grievances in the comments make that harder,
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  not easier. And if you're a volunteer and you think you see
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  something incorrect in a post, check with staff privately before
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  commenting publicly. Things can change instantly in
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  shelter work. What was true this morning might not be true this
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  afternoon. Next Trusting shelter
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  assessments of animals what to do Trust
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  the shelter's professional judgment about animals. They want
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  successful, lasting adoptions as much as you do. If they're
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  honest about an animal's needs or challenges, that's them setting
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  everyone up for success, not trying to discourage adopters.
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  What not to do don't accuse shelters of
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  misrepresenting an animal or second guess their assessment about
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  what kind of home would be a good fit. For example,
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  sometimes people will say the shelter is being too cautious when they
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  recommend a dog be the only dog in a home. They'll
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  share stories about their own pets who learn to love other dogs.
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  But people assessing these animals have experience with hundreds of dogs
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  and make the best prediction they can. It's their job.
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  They know this dog, and they know that needing to be an only dog
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  will make them harder to place. If they make that assessment
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  anyway, it's best not to undermine it or second
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  guess it in the comments. Next up,
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  Showing appreciation. It's great to
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  say thank you for the work you do or I admire your dedication
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  or I'll share this to help recognize their
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  professionalism and the emotionally demanding work that shelter staff
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  do every day. What not to do
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  don't say things like I could never work there. I'd take them all
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  home. I know it's meant affectionately, but it
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  dismisses the emotional work staff do and implies that they
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  lack your compassion. They care as much as you do.
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  They've just found a way to channel that into professional,
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  sustainable action. Next
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  commenting on intake photos that might look less
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  than perfect. What you should do is
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  focus your engagement on sharing the post to get potential
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  adopters as soon as possible. Help the animal get seen
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  by people who can help. What you should not do when you
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  see intake photos that maybe take you back a little
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  bit, don't point out obvious things like Poor
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  baby, they look so scared. Of course they do. They just
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  arrived at an unfamiliar place and they may have been through something really
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  hard. Don't comment. Oh, their nails are too
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  long, they need a groom. They need to get to the vet on those
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  stray intake photos. The staff already sees
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  what you see and they have a plan. Trust that they know what
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  needs to happen next. Don't make it seem like they're neglecting the
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  animal. Next up, and I think this one's pretty
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  important. It's all around media attention and publicity.
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  What you should do if you think a story deserves media
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  attention, reach out to the shelter privately and ask if they've already
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  contacted the press or if they'd like help with that. If you have
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  contacts, what you should not do is
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  just tag a bunch of reporters and media outlets or public
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  figures indiscriminately in every post. Here's what you should
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  know. Shelters actively work to get media attention.
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  They know it helps. This is not news to them.
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  Many have relationships with reporters and they pitch stories
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  intentionally and with care because it
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  doesn't work if you pitch it every story. When people repeatedly
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  tag media without a strategy, it can actually
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  have the opposite effect. Over time, reporters start
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  tuning out all tags from that shelter, which damages the
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  relationships that staff have been carefully and strategically
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  building Next up, when the photo of
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  the animal really concerns you, what to do
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  if something genuinely concerns you is ask the shelter
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  directly so that you understand the full context, or
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  at least someone who actively volunteers there who might know.
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  And don't ask on social media. Ask
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  privately what not to do.
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  Don't speculate publicly about what may have happened to an
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  animal. Assume abuse or neglect, or create
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  narratives about wrongdoing based on incomplete information.
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  For example, it's harmful to speculate that a dog was
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  a bait dog if it has injuries, and a lot of people do this.
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  Lots of stray dogs have injuries from living on the streets.
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  Most of the time we don't know what happened. And when people
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  speculate, these things spread quickly on social media
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  and they can cause real harm. First, if there is an
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  active cruelty case being investigated, public speculation
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  can tip off the person responsible or complicate the case.
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  Second, when commenters publicly accuse specific people
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  of abuse without evidence and they do that on the shelter's
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  page, that could come back and bite the shelter legally.
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  And third, when speculation and accusations fill
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  up the comments. Every time a shelter posts about an injured animal,
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  shelters start sharing less detail to avoid all the drama,
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  which means less transparency for everyone and less exposure for that
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  animal. Resist the urge to fill in
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  gaps with assumptions. Next up,
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  offering suggestions and feedback. What you
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  should do Build a relationship with your shelter first
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  through volunteering, attending events, or being a
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  regular donor. Then, when you have feedback or
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  suggestions, you'll have context about their constraints
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  and your input will carry more weight. What not
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  to do don't criticize shelters publicly when
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  you've never volunteered there, never worked there, never
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  donated there, and don't know the legal or
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  contractual constraints they operate under. Shelters
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  love fresh ideas and suggestions and especially help with
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  actually implementing them, but they operate within legal and
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  financial constraints, processes and procedures.
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  Criticism that isn't grounded in real knowledge,
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  relationships, or responsibility just doesn't improve
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  outcomes. It just shifts emotional labor onto people
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  who are already stretched thin. Next,
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  and this is an important one too,
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  Understanding the different shelter roles. I've talked
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  about this before. I'll talk about it again. Learn
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  about the different roles that municipal shelters, private shelters,
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  and national organizations play. That way you'll
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  better understand the context for the posts that you're seeing.
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  If you haven't already, I suggest strongly to go back and
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  listen to our episode about the different kinds of animal shelters.
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  It's episode number four and and you can find
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  it@animaladvocacyacademy.com
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  four that's your do. It'll help
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  you understand why different organizations operate the way
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  they do, and then your comments
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  will be in the right context. What you should not do
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  is without understanding who plays what role in the
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  animal welfare ecosystem in your community, you
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  shouldn't blame municipal shelters or private nonprofits
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  for that matter, for their inability to do more.
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  You shouldn't disparage other local rescue groups or do
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  things like complain about policies or adoption fees
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  without understanding the financial realities and
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  everything that's going on. Misunderstanding
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  organizational roles leads to misdirected criticism.
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  Now here's the last category and you'll see
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  why it's the most important to me, and that's giving legal
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  and other advice to people. So let's start with the do.
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  Since we just said you're going to learn who's responsible for what
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  in your community, you can point people in
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  the right direction. If people witness cruelty or see a
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  stray dog, sometimes they think posting it on social media
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  is the equivalent of reporting it. It's not.
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  Emphatically not. And you can
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  help by knowing where to report cruelty,
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  local ordinance violations or stray animals.
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  And know it's often not all the same place.
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  And that's what makes it sometimes confusing and need the
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  help of somebody knowledgeable to jump in and say, hey, this is where
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  you report that. And make sure you tell people to
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  report it who have firsthand knowledge
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  of the situation. If people complain to
• 17:42
  you that the law is not strong enough, you can send them to the
• 17:45
  Animal advocate podcast and
• 17:47
  animaladvocacyacademy.com so they can
• 17:51
  learn where to go to get help changing it
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  and what not to do. I see a lot of
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  people giving legal advice that aren't involved in animal
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  law, so I would refrain from giving legal advice if
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  you're not intimately involved with the law. And
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  please don't tell people who have only read about things on social
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  media to flood the shelter with calls. I
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  see this all the time and it's so painful. No
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  shelter has extra staff around to answer all those
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  calls and read all those emails, and none of us
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  want the officers tied up with hundreds of emails and
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  calls about the same case instead of out
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  doing investigations. So these are the
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  patterns I've seen and heard about most consistently, but I know
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  the list isn't exhaustive. Social media is constantly evolving
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  and this is really different in different locations. So
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  if you're a shelter staff member or a volunteer and you have
• 18:54
  suggestions about what helps and what doesn't, I'd love to hear from
• 18:58
  you Send me an
• 18:59
  email@podcastnimaladvocacyacademy.com
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  and I'll definitely respond. This should be an ongoing
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  conversation so that we as advocates use social
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  media for all it's worth. Now, I want to be clear
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  about one thing. None of this means that shelters are
• 19:18
  above criticism. Accountability, transparency,
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  they matter. Systems fail, and mistakes
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  do happen. But as Seth Godin, one of my
• 19:29
  heroes, says, not all criticism is
• 19:32
  equal. The criticism that actually helps comes
• 19:36
  from people who understand the work, who've taken the time to
• 19:40
  learn the constraints and the challenges, and who offer their
• 19:43
  insights with care and specificity.
• 19:47
  Criticism that isn't grounded in knowledge, relationships, or
• 19:51
  responsibility doesn't usually improve outcomes.
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  So if you see something that genuinely concerns you, build a relationship
• 19:59
  with your shelter, learn about their constraints, and then
• 20:03
  engage constructively. That's how you create real change.
• 20:08
  Social media gives us incredible power to help animals. Used
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  well, it saves lives every day, and you can be a part of
• 20:16
  that. And I think that's so exciting. You can be the person who
• 20:19
  connects an animal with that perfect family. You can be the boost that
• 20:23
  gets a post seen by the right people. You can be the
• 20:26
  supporter that makes shelter staff feel appreciated instead of
• 20:30
  defensive. The truth is, most
• 20:34
  unhelpful behaviors come from people who genuinely care. I
• 20:37
  know that. But caring and helping aren't
• 20:41
  always the same thing. Just small adjustments in how
• 20:45
  you engage make a big difference. And the animals in your
• 20:49
  community are counting on you to get it right.
• 20:58
  So our Be the Change segment for this week is to be
• 21:01
  intentional about how you engage with shelter social media.
• 21:06
  Before you comment, read the whole post. Before you share,
• 21:10
  think about who will see it and whether they can help, and try to offer
• 21:14
  some additional specific information that brings it to the top of their
• 21:17
  feed. And if you love an animal but can't adopt,
• 21:21
  find another concrete way to support. Share
• 21:25
  to someone who can adopt, make a donation, offer to
• 21:29
  volunteer. Turn your compassion into the kind of action
• 21:33
  that changes outcomes for animals. You
• 21:36
  have real power to help. Use it wisely.
• 21:41
  That's it for today. The Animal Advocate Podcast is brought
• 21:45
  to you by the Animal Advocacy Academy. You can find
• 21:48
  episodes and show
• 21:50
  notes@animaladvocacyacademy.com
• 21:53
  along with a link to our Facebook and LinkedIn pages where we
• 21:57
  discuss our podcasts and we'd love to discuss your thoughts and
• 22:00
  experiences there. If you're interested in learning more about.
• 22:04
  Protecting animals, subscribe to the show so you get every
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  episode when it comes out. If you have any questions on
• 22:11
  this or any other topic, related to animal law. Email
• 22:15
  them to podcastnimaladvocacyacademy.com
• 22:19
  and we'll make sure to get them answered. We'll either email you back
• 22:23
  or feature them in a future episode, or both.
• 22:26
  And remember, compassion is great, but
• 22:30
  compassionate action is infinitely better. Until
• 22:33
  next week, Live With Compassion.