Call Topic: Behavioral Breakthroughs: Addressing Challenges in Animal Shelters
Do you have behavior questions that you've been pondering, but don't know where to go for answers? Chances are, you aren't the only one who may be wondering. Join our panel featuring five animal behavior shelter professionals with different experience, approaches, and takes on shelter behavior. This panel will explore a wide range of topics that are crucial to understanding and managing behavior in shelter environments, such as assessing pet behaviors, training for staff and volunteers, implementing successful programs, maximizing resources, and navigating the sensitive topic of behavioral euthanasia.
This session is interactive and will provide space for attendees to ask questions in real-time via the chat feature, with responses from our specialists. Additionally, participants will have the opportunity to continue the conversation and engage with the trainers in our community forum.
Don't miss this opportunity to gain valuable knowledge, share experiences, and connect with fellow professionals dedicated to improving the lives of animals in shelters.
Panelists:
- @Maria DeLeon, Dog Behavior Consultant
- She is an IAABC certified dog behavior consultant with over 15 years' experience in the animal behavior and welfare. Her primary focus is assessing and treating complex behavior issues while increasing safe interactions between people and animals.
She regularly contributes to professional media and court cases as an expert in canine behavior and offers consulting services to animal rescue, mentorship to other behavior professionals, and working animal organizations. She pioneered an assessment process that led to multiple successful placements of rescue dogs into search and rescue and scent detection jobs in order to expand placement options for dogs better suited as working animals.
She is also committed to diversifying the human-side of the welfare field and is most proud of building and managing one the most culturally diverse team of shelter behavior professionals in the field.
- @Kayla Wade, Assistant Shelter Operations Manager at Humane Society of Charlotte
- Kayla Wade joined The Humane Society of Charlotte in October 2020 and currently has the position of Assistant Shelter Operations Manager, as well as being the co-chair of HSC’s DEI Committee. Her primary role consists of creating and implementing behavior modification and enrichment plans for shelter dogs and cats to increase their adoptability, lower their length of stay and reduce kennel stress. She also provides low-cost counseling services for people who have pets with behavioral challenges and offers private training lessons.
- Rafael Fontan, Owner/Trainer at RafStar K9, Former instructor with Dogs Playing for Life
- Rafael specializes in working with shelters and rescues on dog to dog assessments, reactivity and social skill building, continued playgroup support and retention programming.
About Community Conversations:
Maddie’s Fund, hosts a weekly hour-long Zoom call for animal well-being professionals. These calls are a collaborative space to share exciting new programs and research, discuss uncomfortable topics, connect with peers in the industry, and more, all while sharing a common goal of preserving the human-animal bond.
This call, recurring each Monday unless otherwise posted, is for executive directors, animal well-being leaders, shelter workers, pet support professionals, volunteers, and rescue organizations.
We've gotten so popular that we've reached the maximum capacity of registrations, so we're doing some Spring cleaning. For our May 6th call and beyond, you will need to re-register and start using the new link to join. You can find your new link to join on the confirmation email you will receive after you register.
The new registration link is: https://maddies.fund/CommunityConvoRegistration2024
All calls are recorded and uploaded to the Community Conversations page on Maddie’s Pet Forum https://forum.maddiesfund.org/communityconversations
Win Ca$h for Attending!
Each month, Maddie's Fund will be giving away up to $5,000 in grants. You can enter to win each time you attend a call or watch on-demand during the month by completing the giveaway drawing entry forms shared in the chat during the calls.
Please note: All views expressed on these calls are not necessarily endorsed by Maddie’s Fund.
#Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice
#EducationandTraining
#Behavior,TrainingandEnrichment
#Maddie'sCommunityConversations