One of the most rewarding jobs I ever had was working at a local Humane Society. This was also one of the most challenging jobs I ever had. When I started working there, I was a kennel worker. I was responsible for cleaning the kennels and cat cages, feeding all the animals, and spending time with them throughout the day to make sure they remained clean, happy, and healthy.
I loved being able to work up close with them all. When you work in this capacity you get to know their personalities. Even though it has been about ten years since I worked there, I still remember many of the animals that came through the shelter. Some of my favorites were Maude and Quigley. Now, when dogs came in for adoption, after a few days, we would match them up with another dog for playtime out in the back yard. Maude was a Great Dane/ St. Bernard mix. She came to my waist and was a great dog. She had been a resident of the humane society for 3 years when I started working there. No one wanted her because she was a cat killer and, as big as she was, she was a house dog.
There was a very nice couple, Pete and Connie, who lived in a mobile home behind the shelter. They were responsible for caring for the shelter and animals after hours. Pete would come in every night and cover Maude with a blanket so she would sleep comfortably and not get cold. The shelter has heating and air conditioning but Pete would do this for Maude every night out of love for her. Quigley was Maude's playmate in the yard and her neighbor in the kennel. He was a beautiful German Shepherd mix. He was an older dog and was usually overlooked by most people coming in to look for a new dog. He did eventually find that perfect home but he had lived at the shelter for about two years prior to that. Maude, unfortunately, was never adopted and passed away due to heart failure at the age of 7. She is still missed by many people who's lives were touched by her.
This Humane Society does not keep all dogs for that long. Unfortunately, there are too many homeless animals waiting for a spot in the shelter. Dogs and cats are constantly watched for signs of depression, etc. If they are not happy, or become ill, or if they become a threat to anyone they have to be put to sleep. It is very sad, but it is reality. I have always been an animal lover and do not normally have a problem with any dogs. At one time a dog was brought in for adoption while I was gone for the weekend. When I came to work on Monday, I couldn't get any where near it. It would try to attack me through the cage as soon as it saw me. Apparently, something about the way I was dressed, or had my hair, reminded this dog of a bad experience with someone. Then, people came in to look for a dog and this same one tried to attack them. We had to put him down because he could not be adopted if no one could even get near him. We had a huge back yard for the dogs to play in and that was where I had the most fun. I could play with them and watch them play together. In the summer we would put a plastic wading pool out there and fill it with water for the dogs to play in. What fun they would have!
After about a year of working the kennel, I was promoted to office manager. Now I got to work with people looking for dogs or cats to adopt, or who needed to put one up for adoption. In most cases this was a very fun and rewarding job. I got to see some of these animals that I had gotten to know so well, go to new, loving homes! This was also a bit of a challenge. Some people would come in looking for a dog or cat that just were not good homes for any that we had. Part of my job was to talk to them about what they were looking for, indoor/ outdoor? Age? any kids?, etc. because we knew better than anyone what these animals were used to. Not everyone liked being told we didn't have what they were looking for. I had one old man threaten me with his cane! I also had people trying to get rid of their dog and not want to take, "We don't have room, but we can put you on the waiting list and call when we have an opening" for an answer.
I had a man tell me that if I didn't take his dog right now he was going to drive up into the mountains and shoot it. After calling the kennel manager and having her come over, we did take the dog. Even through all the trials, and sometimes tears, I still loved my job. I was sad to leave when I had my first son, but I left with many fond memories of all the animals that I got to know. During my time there, I bottle fed three kittens. The first one was put up for adoption. I had named him Zipper because of the sound he made when he purred. His new owners named him Charlie Chaplan because of his personality. This wonderful couple had also adopted a Chow mix dog from the shelter.
She didn't really like men, so when they took the dog and the cat to the vet, they muzzled the dog so she wouldn't bite the vet. She was very well behaved and didn't show any aggression at all. When he opened the cat carrier to get Zipper out, the crazy cat jumped out and attacked the him! One of the former shelter dogs also saved her new owners from a fire in their house. We got to hear many fun stories about our old friends and even got to see some of them when they came back for shots. The best thing was that everytime they came back, they came back happy and excited to see us. That was our biggest reward.
