Volunteering at the SPCA

Owen loves dogs and wishes we had one. He also wishes we had cats that enjoyed cuddling (deep sigh). Chris and I have developed into "cat people" and appreciate the ease of having them and still being able to travel. "Once upon a time" you used to be able to just pop into the SPCA and play with the cats in the cat room. We tried that one Saturday only to learn that's not a thing anymore. You can schedule an appointment but just if you're interested in adopting. We did, though, learn about volunteering as a family and Owen was just old enough to volunteer as well. We got the application then went through hours of training (no exaggeration!) in person and online. Owen and I do "canine enrichment" and Willow joins us for "feline enrichment." It's been super fun and a great way to get Owen's dog fix in without coming home with a dog. He's done great with 90% of the dogs...understandably getting hesitant after a larger dog jumps on him. 

They have a great .25 mile wooded trail outside the SPCA that we typically walk the dogs on unless it's dark (winter) or raining. When it's dark and/or raining, there's a play yard that we take the dogs to. They each have a drawer of toys that we bring out. 

Kyler

Susake (pronounced Sauce-kay)

I'm the one to hold the leash when walking the dogs. They typically like to take the lead and end up zigzagging all around the trail. This was a rare time with a dog (Kyler) that allowed Owen to walk beside him and feel like he was walking him :)

The puppies aren't allowed outside due to them not having all of their shots yet, so we take them to the Meeting Room with toys, which is just as fun. 

Leia

The minor league hockey team in town has a "Pup of the Game" that they highlight between the 1st and 2nd periods. Owen and I have enjoyed volunteering a few times for it. It's nice to have loooooots of petting time in with the dog since we're there for just over 3 hours!

Eliza

Flea

This sweet pup in blind but lives life full force!! He was getting used to his halo but clearly still enjoyed going after his ball!

We enjoyed volunteering for the SPCA's float in the downtown Christmas parade. We were even on the side of the van that was shown on the news but didn't have it recording at home. We've never said "Merry Christmas" so many times in sequence! It was a fun experience though!

Gramma caught a few pictures as we went by!