| I want to volunteer! I want to walk dogs! I want hold the kitties! Why can't we touch the animals? I hope to put it in words that everyone can understand. Not only for your safety, but mostly for the health of the animals in our care, we must insist that you do not put your fingers in the cages. Most people do not understand that by letting every puppy or kitty lick on them that they can be spreading disease through the entire shelter in the short time they are there to visit. This was one of the reasons we started a volunteer orientation about four years ago. It is not all about just coming in to play with the animals. There is a lot of responsibility with being a volunteer in a shelter environment.
Over the last couple of years we have seen the good side and the bad side to volunteering at the shelter. It is not something that you can do just whenever the mood strikes you; it takes a certain amount of commitment to volunteer in this type of environment. People tend to forget where the animals come from or how they got to the shelter in the first place. We get animals from all walks of life (just like the people you meet everyday). Half of them we have no background on and the half we do have a background on is not always accurate. Therefore, we have found it necessary to update our volunteer program to insure better training of those who are helping us help the animals in our care.
We try our best everyday to educate the public, volunteers and anyone who will listen about animal disease, pet over population, animal care and training, etc., anything that will help the animals have a chance at a long and happy, healthy home life. we started our new program in October 2005, and all is going well, we are still taking applications daily. We will be looking for people to walk and bathe dogs, cat socialization, health care, grooming, help with the lost and found program, call backs to adopters, also for people who just want to help with offsite activities, and lots more. I feel like it is going to be tough to start all over but with effort on our part and the kindness and caring of the animal lovers in our community, we can have a volunteer program that better benefits everyone involved. We will have an adult program for volunteers age 20+ years, and a junior program for volunteers age 16-20 years. W! e will begin taking applications for volunteer positions at the October 8th orientation, so if you feel like you have the time and really want to help, please join us for about an hour and see what we have to offer.
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Become a KCHA Volunteer.
You can choose to do things with the animals or for the animals but either way, the following points apply...
- Attendance at a Volunteer Orientation is required before volunteering. When you apply to volunteer, we will schedule an individual orientation for you.
- You can pick up an application for volunteering at the shelter, or you can call (304) 342-1576 and have one sent to you.
- Anyone 18 or older can apply to volunteer. People 16 or over can complete their community service requirement by volunteering at the shelter.
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What to do with the animals...
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Walkies!
Dog walkies that is. We provide the collar leash and canine. You provide the time and love. You'll win wags, licks, probably a paw, and lots of attention. Dog walkers attend a brief training scheduled by the staff.
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Cuddles!
As in cat cuddles. Our cats are cooped in cages and get catankerous (who wouldn't?) without caring cat cuddler visits. Brush, pet, play and lapsit with our furry felines. Cuddlers attend a brief training scheduled by the staff.
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When you do things with the animals at the Shelter, choose a time from 12:00 p.m. to 5 p.m. The Shelter staff puts the Shelter to bed starting at 5 p.m.
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What you can do for the animals...
- Bring recyclable aluminum to the shelter, Tues. - Sat. 12-5 PM. (Proceeds buy adoption supplies.)
- Hold a car wash, garage sale, lemonade stand, bake sale, raffle, or penny drive at your work or school to benefit the shelter.
- Call the shelter to help with one-time special projects and events. (Decorate recycle bins, landscape the shelter grounds, make shelter signs, etc...).
- Check out our on-line WISH LIST for much needed shelter supplies
- Attend Shelter events (See Events page)
- Assist with fund-raising activities
How to get started...
Fill out an Application at the Shelter
Attend a Volunteer Orientation
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BASIC RULES
- You must be at least sixteen years of age.
- You must have parental consent if you are less than eighteen years of age.
- You must sign a volunteer agreement.
- You must have permission from the Kennel Manager to walk dogs. The dogs to be walked will be chosen by a member of our staff.
- Animals to be bathed/groomed will be chosen by our staff.
- A member of our staff will train you.
- The shelter is open seven days a week. Please consult the employee over the volunteers for the most convenient time to volunteer.
- Be aware that all dogs and cats may bite and that all cats scratch.
- Please wear old clothes.
- Be willing to work.
VOLUNTEER PROGRAM
All of us long for the day when all unwanted animals are adopted. But the truth is, there are too many being born. Until the time that pet owners become responsible, we will have the problem of too many animals and not enough good homes. You as a volunteer can help in many ways. Listed below are some of the ways in which you can help.
- Educate the public. Try to impress on them what happens to unwanted litters. Even if they find homes, the question remains, did they find good homes? Did the new owners spay or neuter? Will their new owners protect them from harm? Are the new owners responsible pet owners?
- Bathing and grooming are always needed. No one wants to adopt a dirty animal.
- Exercise the animals by walking the dogs and playing with the cats. Animals become depressed when they are deprived of attention and exercise.
- We always need volunteers for special projects such as Pet Smart, pet parades, Halloween, etc.
- We need help with cleaning the shelter and maintaining the grounds. The public will not adopt from a dirty shelter.
- We always have dirty laundry. We use towels for bathing and to keep the animals dry on the runs.
DISEASE CONTROL
Your own pets should be current on their vaccines. Animal diseases are contagious to your pets and other animals in the shelter. The staff works very hard to prevent the spread of disease and therefore we must have rules and regulations. For this reason we have signs that say, “Do not put fingers in cages.” We request that you wash your hands before and after each animal that you touch. There are other rules that will be covered when you volunteer. One of the most important acts that you perform is to alert the staff of any animal showing symptoms of illness.
The staff and the animals need your help. Please remember to help those who cannot help themselves.
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