In August, the Winnipeg Humane Society held a feline adoption give
away in conjunction with their local partner Petland (Pembina, Kenaston
and Crossroads locations) and the Pembina Valley Humane Society. Together they successfully found homes for
over 200 cats. As we read the reports
from local media we realized that there was information missing and the
complete story had not been told. It
left readers with the sense that the cats had been given away without any
thought as to where they were going, devaluing the animals and the work of the
adoption representatives. The event
wasn't just about addressing an overpopulation issue, it tells the story of how
caring and dedicated shelter and store staff engaged each new potential family
to make sure the right match was being made.
Here's how it worked:
- Potential adopters need to fill out a match-making form and meet with a councillor to discuss things like; their style of home, if they had kids and existing pets, and time available to dedicate to their pets.
- Volunteers or store staff (depending on where the adoption took place) shared the cat's history and helped families select a companion to suit them.
- Cats up for adoption did not leave unless they had been spayed or neutered and had some form of permanent identification.
- New pet families also received a phone call between two weeks to a month and a half following the adoption to see how everyone was adjusting and were offered access to a behaviour councillor should they need one.
A huge amount of work, and pretty amazing when you consider
how many cats found homes that day.
It's been a while since this event took place, but in light
of the Summit Awards last week, we wanted to tip our hat to everyone
who works so hard to build happy pet families in their communities.
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