Well here we are, already at the end of the first quarter of 2018! We hope the new year has been good to you, and all in your care, so far.
Many shelters and rescues have been participating in low or no cost adoption campaigns over the summer period and are reaping the rewards. There is a significant amount of research available now to show that pets adopted via these means do not have different outcomes than those adopted via regular cost adoption programs.
If you are considering implementing a low or no cost adoption campaign at your organisation but are experiencing some resistance by community or team members here are some tips that might help you.
- Clearly communicate with all team members to ensure that they understand that nothing about the adoption process changes except the final financial transaction (and you can always ask for a donation from the adopter to help those pets still in your care). Give everyone the opportunity to voice their concerns and work through them as a group.
- Run a pilot program to trial the program.
- Implement a thorough post adoption follow up system if you don’t already have one. Utilise your volunteers to email and call your new adopters at regular intervals to provide support to the new adopters. Record the information on the pets record in your software.
- Keep data – track as much information as you can such as follow up results, returns, adoptions, length of stay etc. Reviewing data can often provide different/more information than relying on people’s personal experiences, memories or biases.
- Determine your daily cost of care for the pets in your care. Reducing the length of stay has many benefits, one of which is financial. The longer a pet stays with you the more it will cost you so adopting at a reduced (or no) cost might save you money in the long run.
- Choose a specific population of animals that have longer length of stays or be at risk such as older or shy cats, dogs of certain breed types, cats that would suit working situations etc.
- Talk to others that have already implemented a no/low cost adoption program about their experiences, successes and challenges.
- Look at the evidence. We now have Australian research that supports the value of low/no cost adoptions as well as research available from the USA.
Are you still assessing dogs for resource guarding in the shelter? More and more information is coming to light about the usefulness (or otherwise) of various methods of assessing shelter pets. Recently there was another
article published looking at assessing food guarding prior to adoption and if the assessment was not done, what the impact would be. Prior to this the same group of
researchers had determined that the assessment itself was not a reliable indicator of whether the pet would food guard in the home. Researchers at the
Center for Shelter Dogs also came to the same conclusion. This new piece shows that bites and other injuries, to staff and adopters, were not increased when the assessment was removed. However, if the assessment stayed, the dogs were more at risk of euthanasia and had longer lengths of stay. You could do your own study by conducting post adoption follow ups at regular intervals and tracking the results.
Cats that are shy or a bit further down the road of life can sometimes take longer to adopt into a home, particularly in kitten season. PetRescue have recently shone a light on these at-risk individuals by launching the Shy Cats and Senior Citizens program. The goal is to connect cats that are often overlooked by adopters (and who often don’t do well in shelter environments) with older owners. Those that are not necessarily looking for a super active or outgoing feline friend to spend their days with in a quiet environment and with time to give. You can find out more about the benefits to your organisation, the cats and their potential adopters
here.
Whether you call them working cats, barn cats, resident cats or something else, we here at G2Z believe that pretty much anywhere (and anyone) is better with a cat. Social cats, shy cats, grumpy cats, energetic cats, yep all cats can be placed into a variety of “homes”. The “home” itself can take many and varied forms and still be the perfect location for the kitty in question. Businesses of all kinds, including
shops and stores, factories,
office environments, farms,
warehouses, workshops,
bars and more, can all provide a cat with what it needs and be ideal cat caretakers. Education facilities (think kindergartens,
primary and secondary schools, TAFE’s and Universities) and
emergency services headquarters are also great places for cats. Whether it’s providing emotional support, natural pest control, stress reduction or morale boosting, cats are the adaptable, and generally low maintenance, perfect fit for most environments. In fact, many of them probably have a cat nearby now, although it may not be desexed. Whole
books have been written about the wonders of working cats!
So, how do we encourage these future cat staff to take on one of your cats, or the local stray (after you have had it desexed, vaccinated and microchipped)? This program lends itself perfectly to the skills that can be provided by your team of volunteers. Harness the power of the passionate cat advocate and get them to hit the streets with flyers or brochures that you have developed to promote the program. Talking with people, going door to door, makes the process of explaining the benefits of the program much easier and more likely to be successful. Many people don’t realise that these cats are often at risk of a longer shelter stay or worse, and will gladly provide what these felines need, with your support.
Working cats are often a “fee-free” adoption and will come with all of the usual vet work done. Microchips should be registered in the business’s name and the cat registered with council if that is a legislative requirement.
For more resources on Working Cat programs go to our
links page and scroll down and watch this free
webinar. And as always, keep your data and track the outcomes of the program so that you can review and fine tune if necessary, as well as promote your successes.
Whether you call it panleukopaenia, feline parvovirus, enteritis or distemper, this disease is rearing its head again in Australia and could cause major problems for your shelter, rescue or foster homes.
This highly contagious virus can present in many ways. To have the best opportunity of keeping the cats in your care safe make sure you are up with the best practices regarding vaccinations, quarantine, disinfection and cleaning and intake protocols.
Panleukopaenia was covered at G2Z2017 and you can read the papers and view the presentations from Dr Aleisha Swartz and Professor Vanessa Barrs (delivered by Dr Mark Kelman)
here.
Don't forget to like and share the G2Z Facebook page and Twitter account with your friends and colleagues. There is so much great information to share around that just might help you and your organisation save lives and shelter better.
Sharing information is a powerful tool for change and connecting people and we look forward to seeing you joining in the conversation.
