Animal Welfare Professionals

Have you had a simmering discontent among volunteers?  We are experiencing a wave of extremely poor communication from leadership.  Dogs are being quickly added to urgent/short-term rescue lists without commensurate tangible help from staff to see that they get rescued and not euthanized.  Dogs brought in for euthanasia are sometimes instead sent to shelter kennels to be scared and lonely in their final days, or go to fospice where they may or may not have adequate relief of their suffering.  Policies and programs change abruptly (so now spay/neuter outreach is not worthwhile?) All the while maintaining a public image of a kinder, gentler shelter.  Many of the programs that help make dogs and cats more adoptable have been created and run by volunteers.  We see an adminstration eager to take credit for any successes but not seeking input before making changes.  How do we get leadership to involve volunteers, treat volunteers as important to the process?  Seasoned voluteers are murmuring about leaving in frustration.  Can this be repaired? (Staff-volunteer communication is generally good)

Hey Donna! I’m sorry that you’re feeling like this and hopefully the awesome people on this forum can provide you with some insight that resonates with you. 

We really value your input and feedback and we’d love to sit down and discuss your concerns in person. You can email Kristen, Sarah, or myself and we can set something up. :)

I hope that we can talk soon so that we can address your concerns and continue working on making improvements for all of the people and pets at PACC. 

Have you reached out directly to the leadership team and asked for clarification? Write down your questions and try to listen with an open mind and heart - there are likely two very different perspectives on what is going on and it's worth a conversation.

I totally understand where you're coming from and I know you're looking for support, but communicating it by listing all the wrongs the shelter is doing with their name right there under yours will likely make the situation more polarized. I can't imagine it wouldn't be taken as a shot at the staff. Consider setting up a meeting with leadership. If it doesn't work (this is what happened to me a few years ago) we just set up our own group in order to help those pets we felt weren't getting what they needed from the shelter.