Before coming to San Jose, I had searched for various volunteering activities related to dogs and I had applied for one program as well. So, when I moved here, I got an email from that Shelter Home inviting me for the four-hours long training and asked me to come with 35 dollars as they would provide a badge, apron and a t-shirt. I was very happy that finally I am taking a baby step towards my dream of having a dog of my own one day and I was very excited. The day came and I was all set but I had numerous doubts in my mind. I don’t have a car right now so I have to spend at least one hour in bus/train to reach to the shelter home, also they had asked to bring 35 dollars and I was not certain about the legitimacy of that. Two hours in computation, transportation money and 35 dollars; I was not certain whether I should go for this or not. To confirm all those concerns and to give my dream a shot, I went to the shelter home and everything changed for me.
Those people were very polite and they thanked all the volunteers for coming there. They also told that if we don’t want to shell out money for the apron, then they can surely arrange for the used one and hence made sure that it was our time which was the most valuable thing for them as well as for those awesome dogs. All the volunteers introduced themselves in the beginning of the session and I came to know that many of them don’t have pets. I was sort of happy that there are people like me who are there just for their passion for dogs. I exaggerated in my application that I have experience with dogs, though I had many dog friends but all of them were street dogs and I was never fully responsible for them but just to get into this volunteering, I exaggerated this fact. During the training they brought a couple of dogs into the classroom and everyone was so delighted. Everyone wanted to pat the dog, spend time with the dog and wanted to be liked by the dog. The dog came near me as well and I was so happy that this little animal is not afraid of me. I patted her for a while and then she went to the next person, this was just a starter.
After the classroom training, we went to the actual hands-on training. I was completely amazed by the organized way in which this shelter home was operated. Some senior volunteers and staff members knew each dog by the name and they had a chart for special needs of the dogs. Yesterday I actually realized the function served by the shelter home. They tried their best to make sure that each dog is adopted and gets a nice home for the rest of its life. They do not want to euthanize a single dog, and they really mean it. Every day many dogs are come into the shelter home and many leave but unfortunately the number of dogs coming to shelter home are more. As a volunteer, my duty was to take the dogs out for a walk so that they can get some open air, socialize with humans and exercise. Also, we were instructed to encourage and develop good behavior in each dog so that it gets liked by the visitors and gets adopted at the earliest. So, this was the time for me to actually take a dog out of its kennel and take it for a walk. I was nervously excited and entered into the room. There were around 10 kennels in that room and each kennel was locked. Most of them had two dogs, those are called kennel-mates, and I was asked to take one dog for a walk from a kennel shared by two. As I entered the room, all the dogs looked at me with the hope that I will take him/her for the walk. They were talking from their eyes and body language that they wanted to go out but I could take only one as I was very new. I opened the kennel shared by two and both the dogs started coming out. It was very difficult and painful for me to let other stay there and take only one of them for a walk. But then I thought that at least one of them is going out and that’s great. I tied the belt around her neck and off we were to the yard. She was a Chihuahua and was extremely friendly. She was very excited about going for a walk in the yard and I successfully passed my training as well. We went to the yard with several other dogs and the instructor explained about the dog-behavior and shared their experience with us.
One of the instructor told us that for us it was just 15-20 minutes but for that dog, it was her whole day. This statement touched me and I felt the compulsion of taking as many dogs as I could out for a walk. Dogs develop social etiquette, grow their minds and get some physical stamina by going out for a walk. This makes them more suitable for adoption. I was touched by these facts so I stayed till the end to start volunteering just after the training. I took two dogs for a walk and they both loved it. I was scared at first as there were many things to take care but I learned them by doing them. The worst part is when we start heading back to the kennel, the dogs understand that and they start resisting. They do not want to go back in the kennel but that’s the reality. Also, when a dog comes back from a walk, the kennel mate as well as dogs from adjacent kennels envy that dog and starts barking. These animals really need care and attention. I was happy that I could take three dogs out during the whole day and am determined to go every weekend to make the day for many dogs. First time in my life, I felt greatly rewarded for my time and energies. The fact that my 15 minutes is a whole day of that dog makes me feel more energized and determined.
I can proudly say that, I am a dog-walker!
Those people were very polite and they thanked all the volunteers for coming there. They also told that if we don’t want to shell out money for the apron, then they can surely arrange for the used one and hence made sure that it was our time which was the most valuable thing for them as well as for those awesome dogs. All the volunteers introduced themselves in the beginning of the session and I came to know that many of them don’t have pets. I was sort of happy that there are people like me who are there just for their passion for dogs. I exaggerated in my application that I have experience with dogs, though I had many dog friends but all of them were street dogs and I was never fully responsible for them but just to get into this volunteering, I exaggerated this fact. During the training they brought a couple of dogs into the classroom and everyone was so delighted. Everyone wanted to pat the dog, spend time with the dog and wanted to be liked by the dog. The dog came near me as well and I was so happy that this little animal is not afraid of me. I patted her for a while and then she went to the next person, this was just a starter.
After the classroom training, we went to the actual hands-on training. I was completely amazed by the organized way in which this shelter home was operated. Some senior volunteers and staff members knew each dog by the name and they had a chart for special needs of the dogs. Yesterday I actually realized the function served by the shelter home. They tried their best to make sure that each dog is adopted and gets a nice home for the rest of its life. They do not want to euthanize a single dog, and they really mean it. Every day many dogs are come into the shelter home and many leave but unfortunately the number of dogs coming to shelter home are more. As a volunteer, my duty was to take the dogs out for a walk so that they can get some open air, socialize with humans and exercise. Also, we were instructed to encourage and develop good behavior in each dog so that it gets liked by the visitors and gets adopted at the earliest. So, this was the time for me to actually take a dog out of its kennel and take it for a walk. I was nervously excited and entered into the room. There were around 10 kennels in that room and each kennel was locked. Most of them had two dogs, those are called kennel-mates, and I was asked to take one dog for a walk from a kennel shared by two. As I entered the room, all the dogs looked at me with the hope that I will take him/her for the walk. They were talking from their eyes and body language that they wanted to go out but I could take only one as I was very new. I opened the kennel shared by two and both the dogs started coming out. It was very difficult and painful for me to let other stay there and take only one of them for a walk. But then I thought that at least one of them is going out and that’s great. I tied the belt around her neck and off we were to the yard. She was a Chihuahua and was extremely friendly. She was very excited about going for a walk in the yard and I successfully passed my training as well. We went to the yard with several other dogs and the instructor explained about the dog-behavior and shared their experience with us.
One of the instructor told us that for us it was just 15-20 minutes but for that dog, it was her whole day. This statement touched me and I felt the compulsion of taking as many dogs as I could out for a walk. Dogs develop social etiquette, grow their minds and get some physical stamina by going out for a walk. This makes them more suitable for adoption. I was touched by these facts so I stayed till the end to start volunteering just after the training. I took two dogs for a walk and they both loved it. I was scared at first as there were many things to take care but I learned them by doing them. The worst part is when we start heading back to the kennel, the dogs understand that and they start resisting. They do not want to go back in the kennel but that’s the reality. Also, when a dog comes back from a walk, the kennel mate as well as dogs from adjacent kennels envy that dog and starts barking. These animals really need care and attention. I was happy that I could take three dogs out during the whole day and am determined to go every weekend to make the day for many dogs. First time in my life, I felt greatly rewarded for my time and energies. The fact that my 15 minutes is a whole day of that dog makes me feel more energized and determined.
I can proudly say that, I am a dog-walker!
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