Animal Welfare Professionals

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  • 1.  How have you integrated new staff into the Animal Welfare field?

    Posted 01-21-2022 09:10 AM
    Hey everyone,
    I am currently interviewing for two positions on my placement team, and many of the applicants are new to the animal welfare field. How have you assisted green employees in navigating the various emotional and psychological strains they may encounter as they start their journey into animal welfare, and keep them encouraged and focused on the positives vs the sad/overwhelming situations?
    #EducationandTraining
    #PeopleManagement(includingVolunteerIntegration)

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    Auriana Brown
    Placement Manager
    LifeLine Animal Project
    Atlanta, GA
    404-490-1427

    Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Justice and
    Pet Support Services Specialist
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  • 2.  RE: How have you integrated new staff into the Animal Welfare field?

    Posted 01-24-2022 08:49 AM
    Hi Auriana- so we have definitely brought in some folks without an animal welfare background to work in our Pet Resource Center, customer service, etc. and I have actually found that their lack of inherent biases/ animal welfare background has been a positive. They can see things from a fresh perspective. They have better alignment with what the community actually wants, needs and even understands about animal sheltering and animal rescue. They ask great questions and point out gaps in our communication where we assumed someone knew things (because of our industry knowledge) that in actuality they did not.

    So I would look at this as an opportunity to go through your policies and ask them what they think. Is that fair? Inclusive? Based on fact or fear? I have told these folks during their interviews that emotions run high when it comes to people and their pets, and we need their help to ensure everything we are doing is clear and consistent, so we can mitigate those emotional encounters with good policy and process.

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    Alexis Pugh
    Director, Memphis Animal Services
    www.memphisanimalservices.com

    Organizational Management
    & Pet Support Services Specialist
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