Here at the Dumb Friends League, we often say our compassionate community, including loyal donors like you, are heroes for the animals in our care. It is you who helps ensure their bellies are full, wounds are treated, and spirits are high, especially over the past few months as our shelters have filled to capacity.
An integral part of the care we provide is positive training and support for animals with behavioral challenges. Because of trauma, homelessness, and other adverse experiences, animals often come to us with a range of behavioral needs that tend to hinder or delay potential adopters from bringing them home. This can lead to extended stays at the shelter and, consequently, the development of additional or intensified behavioral issues.
As a Socially Conscious Animal Shelter, the Dumb Friends League is dedicated to placing every healthy and safe animal in loving homes. To prepare them for adoption, our behavioral specialists work individually with animals to help decrease or redirect any destructive or harmful behaviors. But that’s only part of the puzzle – these animals also need the right person who will take the time to understand their ongoing needs and learn how best to care for them. They need a hero.
On September 17, from 9 – 10:30 a.m. (and virtually on September 16, from 4 – 5:30 p.m.), the League will begin the first of what we hope will be a series of interactive behavioral sessions for people committed to the responsibility of adopting our highest-need dogs – those who have historically been passed over or rejected because of behavioral issues. Called Now Recruiting Heroes, these sessions will educate potential adopters about what to expect and empower them with resources and strategies to support healthy human-animal relationships. We will also allow participants to visit with a select group of long-term residents in the hopes of facilitating permanent adoptive placements.
If you or someone you know is interested in being a HERO for an animal in our care, please register for the event here. Come see how rewarding it can be to help a dog in need!