The HUMANE thing to do
CONNOQUENESSING TWP— From friendly haven to forever homes.
The Butler County Humane Society provides the former with hopes of finding the latter for hundreds of dogs, cats, puppies and kittens each year.
Those who work at the facility — paid employees and volunteers — don't do so for monetary gain. There isn't much money to be gained, actually.
"Being a nonprofit agency, we can only pay our employees so much,"BCHSexecutive director Beverly Matthews said. "People can make more money at other facilities, so we do have some employee turnover here."
Animal turnover is more common, however, and more expected.
While the BCHScan house up to 150 dogs and cats comfortably at one time, this year it completed 487 adoptions between Jan. 1 and October.
Donna Gartrell works the front desk and gets to know potential pet owners as they walk through the door.
"We ask what type of pet they're interested in,"Gartrell said. "We're not trying to move animals out of here, we're trying to place them in suitable homes for them and their owners.
"This is animal adoption, and we work hard to find good matches. We love every animal here. We want happy endings."
That's why Gartrell and her staff meet every member of the adopting family along with any other pets that family may have. They also have the would-be pet owner fill out a sheet depicting their lifestyle, hours the animal would be alone, and what type of pet they're looking for.
"Dogs have different personalities,"Gartrell said. "We spend time with them, work with them and discover what each animal is like."
Each dog brought to the facility is put through a behavioral assessment test. The dog will be stared at and touched to see how it reacts. BCHSpersonnel will play with the dog to determine how playful it is and whether it plays rough.A food aggression test is also done to see how docile the animal is, along with a test to see how well it interacts with other dogs."The first thing we do is determine if an animal is suitable for adoption, or can be made to be that way,"Matthews said. "Unfortunately, some are unable to be rehabilitated to that point."Those are tough decisions. Everybody who works here cares deeply about these animals."Matthews said there are many worthwhile charities that need volunteers, but only so many animal lovers. "We have to stick together to make a place like this work," she said.Once the animal's behavior is assessed, it receives an identification tag describing its personality.Goofball means the animal is extremely playful. Wallflower means it's shy. Busy Bee means it's full of energy. Rookie means it needs training. Detective means it likes to explore.Bashful Tourist, Life of The Party and Class Clown are other personality labels."Those tags help us match pets to people,"Gartrell said. "People want different things in a dog. Some want a playful pet. Others just want a companion. Some people have time to invest in training an animal. Some don't."Animals are brought to the shelter as either strays, injured, abandoned, as transfers or rescues from other facilities, or by owners who can no longer keep them.Volunteer stories are just as varied.Megan Barber was going to school to become a veterinarian's assistant and began working at the BCHSto gain some experience.
"I figured I'd better start dealing with animals if I was going to enter that field,"Barber said. "Now I'm full-time, I've been here six years and I'm not planning on leaving."You either care or you don't. I care."Barber grew particularly attached to Cosmo, a chow-Labrador retriever mix who was at the shelter for five years. She walked him and played with him daily.She came to work one day and learned Cosmo had been adopted."I bawled like a baby,"she said. "Of course, I was happy he found a home after all those years. That's the goal. But, yes, I miss him. The emotions you go through ... This job can be stressful that way. But it's worth it."Volunteer worker Larraine Hepner recalled "my first success story," a black and white cat named Pennzoil."When he first came in here, he was really shy, just stayed in the back of its cage and wanted no part of anybody,"Hepner said. "Every day for two weeks, I'd stop by and just talk to him."He'd move a little closer to me each time, (he) eventually touched my finger, then walked on my shoulders. Eventually, he was adopted. Stories like that make time spent here so worthwhile."Volunteer Cindy Shaffer takes pictures of animals up for adoption and puts them on the BCHSWeb site. Her favorite success story is a toy terrier mix named Tater Tot."He was a mess when he came in, his fur all matted and his eyes runny,"Shaffer said. "We worked with him, got him healthy, showed him some attention and he responded."It's amazing what a little love and attention can do for an animal. He became a favorite here. He was like my baby. When he got adopted, it was rough on me, but I knew he was going to a good home. That's what all that time and effort was for."All animals brought into the shelter are given a name. Volunteers think of pet names, write them on a slip of paper and deposit them in a can."We have separate cans for dogs and cats, male and female names," said Cindy Lehrman, BCHSvolunteer and fundraising coordinator. "Some of these names are pretty creative."Among them are Bubbles, Cheyenne, Ashley Eden, Clover, Pickle, Lola, Zugs and Shell.
Slippery Rock resident Anita Platt volunteers at the shelter, as do her daughters Amanda, Mary and Denise. They spend 10 hours a week walking dogs, bathing them, even taking them out for ice cream."My girls just love animals and coming here fills a void for them,"Platt said."We live in a rural area with no neighbors close by. Since we've been coming here, my girls have become more outgoing and more personable."Amanda Platt, 18, promptly rattled off the names of 26 dogs and cats that have been adopted in the span of a couple of weeks."We love all of them as if they were ours,"she said.But the Platts already have seven cats, a dog and two gerbils at home.Lehrman, who has six dogs, nine foster kittens, eight birds, a turtle and a fish tank, is inspired by the animals' devotion."Pets are so devoted to you and their affection is genuine," Lehrman said. "The homeless ones are special. We spoil them here, we treat them so well."The dogs are taken for walks or let outside to run two or three times a day. Their cages are cleaned three times a day and their bowls and sheets are washed thoroughly.Cathy Brickner, the volunteer ambassador at the BCHS, said the volunteers have developed a spay and neuter program for the animals. As a result, the BCHSadopts out some pets that have already undergone that procedure."We're working with local veterinarians and about 30 of our animals will have been spayed or neutered by the end of the year,"Brickner said."That number will grow. The program is only in its infancy stage and it's a program formed and run by the volunteers."We couldn't function like we do without our volunteer help. People do it because they can't have animals for some reason and this fills a void, or they've recently lost an animal, or they just love animals and want to do their part."An Evans City resident, Brickner owns three dogs and a cat. Shaffer has two dogs, three cats and two lizards.Although a love of animals initially attracts many volunteers to the humane society, Rosemarie Angiolieri became a volunteer after her daughter got involved with the shelter. She walks the dogs and socializes the cats."I'll take three or four dogs at a time for 45 minutes or so," she said. "You do get attached to them, and I cry every time one leaves. After a while, you get used to it and you know it's a good thing."I feel less stressed when I come here. Spending time with these animals is a form of relaxation for me."As well as enjoying time with the animals, Barber savors her moments before leaving: She began something of a ritual at the shelter one night as she prepared to close the door of the kennel area and turned out the lights."Good night. We love you," she said to the animals."And we do," she noted."Those animals are our family. And we take care of family."
