Animal Welfare Professionals

One of our biggest ways that we have been able to increase volunteer retention is by helping to foster and build relationships among the volunteers. We had a buddy/mentor system with our volunteers that helped pair them up. When volunteers bond and become friends, we found that they are more likely to want to come to the shelter TOGETEHR to spend time walking dogs or socializing cats. These volunteers have become our long-term volunteers who come weekly. We also found the same for fostering the volunteer/staff bond and friendship. People are more likely to show up on a regular basis when they feel like friends or family. So coming to the shelter is not only for the animals but it also has a humane aspect to it as well. 

As a volunteer, I can tell what you what keeps me coming back and what stops me from going. When I feel included and part of the team, I come back. This comes from leadership. The director of the shelter sets the tone. Communication with us; how many dogs got adopted, which dogs got adopted... don't just bark orders at us, make us feel like we are valued and are making a difference. Having a whats app group chat also helps us feel like we are part of something. If I'm required to stay a certain number of hours, or come a certain number of days per week; I'm not going to show. Putting rules on someone who is giving their time for free is not right.  Communication is key to making people feel valued and heard and then they feel part of something greater than themselves. 

As a volunteer, I can tell what you what keeps me coming back and what stops me from going. When I feel included and part of the team, I come back. This comes from leadership. The director of the shelter sets the tone. Communication with us; how many dogs got adopted, which dogs got adopted... don't just bark orders at us, make us feel like we are valued and are making a difference. Having a whats app group chat also helps us feel like we are part of something. If I'm required to stay a certain number of hours, or come a certain number of days per week; I'm not going to show. Putting rules on someone who is giving their time for free is not right.  Communication is key to making people feel valued and heard and then they feel part of something greater than themselves. 

Thank you for your insight from a volunteer perspective. That is very helpful. We are not a dog shelter, we take in farm, exotic and wildlife at our sanctuary, what our volunteers do is a little different. We always feel we are communicating too much, bugging our volunteers. but we want them to know what is going on, what we need help with and what they've done well. 

As far as requiring volunteers to work a certain number of hours or number of days a week. We ask up front what time they are willing to give but we do expect them to show on the days/hours they say they will be there. We do ask that if someone joins our feed/clean team the commit to three to four hours once a week. This keeps the animals feeding on schedule which is very important. Communication needs to go both ways too. We are 100% volunteer run so we depend on volunteers to make sure the animals are cared for and things run smoothly. If a volunteer doesn't show up last minute it can throw everything out of wack. 

Another thing we do is ask our volunteers to evaluate "us". Every couple of months we ask them to share what they think can be done better, what tools they may need to make things more efficient, etc. We know this helps our volunteers feel that they are a valuable part of our team, which they are. I love to hear our volunteers sharing stories and saying "our animals". It shows how invested they are in our mission.  

What we do is very labor intensive and we are in a rural area at least 45 minutes from everywhere. Because of this we do have a hard time keeping many volunteers but at the same time those that are committed stay a long time. We have several that have been with us 4-5 years. 

As a volunteer, I can tell what you what keeps me coming back and what stops me from going. When I feel included and part of the team, I come back. This comes from leadership. The director of the shelter sets the tone. Communication with us; how many dogs got adopted, which dogs got adopted... don't just bark orders at us, make us feel like we are valued and are making a difference. Having a whats app group chat also helps us feel like we are part of something. If I'm required to stay a certain number of hours, or come a certain number of days per week; I'm not going to show. Putting rules on someone who is giving their time for free is not right.  Communication is key to making people feel valued and heard and then they feel part of something greater than themselves. 

Wow!  That's so impressive that you have volunteers willing to drive so far to help out!  I love that you have the volunteers evaluate you.  Is that evaluation done in a meeting or by a formal survey?  I'm trying to picture how we would do that with our volunteers.

Thank you for your insight from a volunteer perspective. That is very helpful. We are not a dog shelter, we take in farm, exotic and wildlife at our sanctuary, what our volunteers do is a little different. We always feel we are communicating too much, bugging our volunteers. but we want them to know what is going on, what we need help with and what they've done well. 

As far as requiring volunteers to work a certain number of hours or number of days a week. We ask up front what time they are willing to give but we do expect them to show on the days/hours they say they will be there. We do ask that if someone joins our feed/clean team the commit to three to four hours once a week. This keeps the animals feeding on schedule which is very important. Communication needs to go both ways too. We are 100% volunteer run so we depend on volunteers to make sure the animals are cared for and things run smoothly. If a volunteer doesn't show up last minute it can throw everything out of wack. 

Another thing we do is ask our volunteers to evaluate "us". Every couple of months we ask them to share what they think can be done better, what tools they may need to make things more efficient, etc. We know this helps our volunteers feel that they are a valuable part of our team, which they are. I love to hear our volunteers sharing stories and saying "our animals". It shows how invested they are in our mission.  

What we do is very labor intensive and we are in a rural area at least 45 minutes from everywhere. Because of this we do have a hard time keeping many volunteers but at the same time those that are committed stay a long time. We have several that have been with us 4-5 years. 

As a volunteer, I can tell what you what keeps me coming back and what stops me from going. When I feel included and part of the team, I come back. This comes from leadership. The director of the shelter sets the tone. Communication with us; how many dogs got adopted, which dogs got adopted... don't just bark orders at us, make us feel like we are valued and are making a difference. Having a whats app group chat also helps us feel like we are part of something. If I'm required to stay a certain number of hours, or come a certain number of days per week; I'm not going to show. Putting rules on someone who is giving their time for free is not right.  Communication is key to making people feel valued and heard and then they feel part of something greater than themselves. 

Hi @Ellen Pearsall, Thank you. We are fortunate that we have a few that will consistently drive so far to volunteer, but not nearly as many as we need. We have 188 animals amongst 27 different species currently living at the sanctuary. During the summer, like now, we only have help three, sometimes four, days a week because many of our regular volunteers are retired and "snow birds" who go north for the summer.  On those three days there are groups of volunteers. 

We reach out by text or email with the basic questions and the volunteers respond to that. We also make it clear that we are always open for discussions on how to improve or if there is an issue and many will talk to us in person as well. 

Wow!  That's so impressive that you have volunteers willing to drive so far to help out!  I love that you have the volunteers evaluate you.  Is that evaluation done in a meeting or by a formal survey?  I'm trying to picture how we would do that with our volunteers.

Thank you for your insight from a volunteer perspective. That is very helpful. We are not a dog shelter, we take in farm, exotic and wildlife at our sanctuary, what our volunteers do is a little different. We always feel we are communicating too much, bugging our volunteers. but we want them to know what is going on, what we need help with and what they've done well. 

As far as requiring volunteers to work a certain number of hours or number of days a week. We ask up front what time they are willing to give but we do expect them to show on the days/hours they say they will be there. We do ask that if someone joins our feed/clean team the commit to three to four hours once a week. This keeps the animals feeding on schedule which is very important. Communication needs to go both ways too. We are 100% volunteer run so we depend on volunteers to make sure the animals are cared for and things run smoothly. If a volunteer doesn't show up last minute it can throw everything out of wack. 

Another thing we do is ask our volunteers to evaluate "us". Every couple of months we ask them to share what they think can be done better, what tools they may need to make things more efficient, etc. We know this helps our volunteers feel that they are a valuable part of our team, which they are. I love to hear our volunteers sharing stories and saying "our animals". It shows how invested they are in our mission.  

What we do is very labor intensive and we are in a rural area at least 45 minutes from everywhere. Because of this we do have a hard time keeping many volunteers but at the same time those that are committed stay a long time. We have several that have been with us 4-5 years. 

As a volunteer, I can tell what you what keeps me coming back and what stops me from going. When I feel included and part of the team, I come back. This comes from leadership. The director of the shelter sets the tone. Communication with us; how many dogs got adopted, which dogs got adopted... don't just bark orders at us, make us feel like we are valued and are making a difference. Having a whats app group chat also helps us feel like we are part of something. If I'm required to stay a certain number of hours, or come a certain number of days per week; I'm not going to show. Putting rules on someone who is giving their time for free is not right.  Communication is key to making people feel valued and heard and then they feel part of something greater than themselves. 

I agree that building positive relationships with your volunteers is key.   I began my career 30 years ago as a volunteer and the I worked with some staff that were supportive and that were not so supportive.  The supportive ones and the ones that made feel part of the team kept me coming back.  The ones that were self absorbed in their own issues with work or customers or other volunteers made be feel uncomfortable at times and found myself not wanting to be around them much, just like co-workers.

Now years later I remember what made be keep coming back and I go out of my way to make sure volunteers feel appreciated, feel part of the team and feel valued.  Some of the things that I have done:

• Make sure we have bottle water and health snacks that our core volunteers will actually eat - protein bars they like, beef sticks to keep them going, fresh fruit, etc.  I mention core volunteers as we also have teen court ordered volunteers and while I have bottled water available for them, I don't specifically have snacks available for them as they are usually only here for a short time, but they too get snacks.
• Volunteers get their own Holiday stocking and staff are encouraged to provide stocking stuffers to show their support for the volunteers
• We have t-shirts that our core volunteers get as well as returning volunteers can apply to get access badges with thei photo on it that allows them to have access throughout the shelter to better assist patrons and staff
• They are included in the City Employee Kudos corner announcements whenever they acknowledged by adopters citizens then come in contact with.

And finally - thanking them personally and just in passing for helping with a particular task or praising them on an adoption goes so much further that we realize.

The above are ways of praising return volunteers.  Whenever we have new volunteers, I try to keep an eye on what they are interested in and what they are disinterested in.  Say for instance, I volunteer is really good at working the large dogs, walking them, teaching them basic commands and giving feed back about their personalities - I try to make thos volunteers our dog walkers and put them cleaning cat kennels.  Also when we advertise for volunteers on social media, we specify what we are looking for and what the duties and what the hours are.  Keeping the shift short can help reduce overworking volunteers too.

I hope this helps someone out there.  Take care everyone, stay safe and thank you for all that you do.  You are appreciated and seen.

I agree that building positive relationships with your volunteers is key.   I began my career 30 years ago as a volunteer and the I worked with some staff that were supportive and that were not so supportive.  The supportive ones and the ones that made feel part of the team kept me coming back.  The ones that were self absorbed in their own issues with work or customers or other volunteers made be feel uncomfortable at times and found myself not wanting to be around them much, just like co-workers.

Now years later I remember what made be keep coming back and I go out of my way to make sure volunteers feel appreciated, feel part of the team and feel valued.  Some of the things that I have done:

• Make sure we have bottle water and health snacks that our core volunteers will actually eat - protein bars they like, beef sticks to keep them going, fresh fruit, etc.  I mention core volunteers as we also have teen court ordered volunteers and while I have bottled water available for them, I don't specifically have snacks available for them as they are usually only here for a short time, but they too get snacks.
• Volunteers get their own Holiday stocking and staff are encouraged to provide stocking stuffers to show their support for the volunteers
• We have t-shirts that our core volunteers get as well as returning volunteers can apply to get access badges with thei photo on it that allows them to have access throughout the shelter to better assist patrons and staff
• They are included in the City Employee Kudos corner announcements whenever they acknowledged by adopters citizens then come in contact with.

And finally - thanking them personally and just in passing for helping with a particular task or praising them on an adoption goes so much further that we realize.

The above are ways of praising return volunteers.  Whenever we have new volunteers, I try to keep an eye on what they are interested in and what they are disinterested in.  Say for instance, I volunteer is really good at working the large dogs, walking them, teaching them basic commands and giving feed back about their personalities - I try to make thos volunteers our dog walkers and put them cleaning cat kennels.  Also when we advertise for volunteers on social media, we specify what we are looking for and what the duties and what the hours are.  Keeping the shift short can help reduce overworking volunteers too.

I hope this helps someone out there.  Take care everyone, stay safe and thank you for all that you do.  You are appreciated and seen.

@Chun Mezger that is a great list of ways to show volunteers your appreciation. We do much of the same including making sure there is always cold bottled water and snacks available, each new volunteer gets a FANS tshirt, we switched giving a holiday gift to giving a Thanksgiving gift and of course we say thank you in person and by text as often as we can. What I love is when they thank us for allowing them to help. For long term volunteers we also give them other FANS gear such as mugs with pictures of their favorite animals, wristbands, etc.   

I love the idea of a Kudos corner! We don't have the general public come through our place because we are more a sanctuary than an adoption center but how fun would it be if we have thank you notes written by the animals. I'm going to adopt this from you! Thanks for sharing and for all you do to make your volunteers feel included and appreciated. 

I agree that building positive relationships with your volunteers is key.   I began my career 30 years ago as a volunteer and the I worked with some staff that were supportive and that were not so supportive.  The supportive ones and the ones that made feel part of the team kept me coming back.  The ones that were self absorbed in their own issues with work or customers or other volunteers made be feel uncomfortable at times and found myself not wanting to be around them much, just like co-workers.

Now years later I remember what made be keep coming back and I go out of my way to make sure volunteers feel appreciated, feel part of the team and feel valued.  Some of the things that I have done:

• Make sure we have bottle water and health snacks that our core volunteers will actually eat - protein bars they like, beef sticks to keep them going, fresh fruit, etc.  I mention core volunteers as we also have teen court ordered volunteers and while I have bottled water available for them, I don't specifically have snacks available for them as they are usually only here for a short time, but they too get snacks.
• Volunteers get their own Holiday stocking and staff are encouraged to provide stocking stuffers to show their support for the volunteers
• We have t-shirts that our core volunteers get as well as returning volunteers can apply to get access badges with thei photo on it that allows them to have access throughout the shelter to better assist patrons and staff
• They are included in the City Employee Kudos corner announcements whenever they acknowledged by adopters citizens then come in contact with.

And finally - thanking them personally and just in passing for helping with a particular task or praising them on an adoption goes so much further that we realize.

The above are ways of praising return volunteers.  Whenever we have new volunteers, I try to keep an eye on what they are interested in and what they are disinterested in.  Say for instance, I volunteer is really good at working the large dogs, walking them, teaching them basic commands and giving feed back about their personalities - I try to make thos volunteers our dog walkers and put them cleaning cat kennels.  Also when we advertise for volunteers on social media, we specify what we are looking for and what the duties and what the hours are.  Keeping the shift short can help reduce overworking volunteers too.

I hope this helps someone out there.  Take care everyone, stay safe and thank you for all that you do.  You are appreciated and seen.