tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34148184339031594352026-02-18T11:45:06.203-06:00A blog dedicated to detailing emerging trends in animal sheltering and discussing the central concepts of animal welfareDarlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-3859059790477947522014-06-02T09:55:00.000-05:002014-06-02T09:55:04.167-05:00

The Shelter Report is now bigger and better, please follow us over at: www.shelterreport.com!

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-32722027523170626902013-04-03T23:33:00.001-05:002013-04-08T22:09:57.267-05:00

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Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-22829283535231928812013-03-18T22:51:00.000-05:002013-03-18T22:53:29.052-05:00

I apologize for the lack of posting, but I have been pretty busy lately blogging over at TAILS. Here is a list of my most recent TAILS posts. These are written for shelter supporters/non-shelter personnel, but I think there are still some concepts that are useful for those working on the front lines of animal sheltering as well. Shelter Myths: This series of posts debunks the most common

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-46953874360798766112012-11-25T21:33:00.001-06:002012-11-25T21:55:29.725-06:00

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Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-91120956167411400492012-10-17T19:08:00.000-05:002012-10-17T19:10:14.941-05:00

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Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-86327340064592917402012-07-27T07:48:00.000-05:002012-07-27T08:59:47.710-05:00

How can you measure the volunteer's contribution to your shelter? Most, if not all, animal shelters these days have volunteer programs.&nbsp; Some may be long-established and running smoothly, others may be in their infancy and struggling with some growing pains, while most probably fall somewhere in between these two scenarios.&nbsp; Whatever the case is for your shelter, statistical

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-22961520574856003452012-06-04T22:34:00.000-05:002012-06-04T22:34:00.922-05:00

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Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-10427857689416279762012-05-08T22:22:00.000-05:002012-05-08T22:24:12.009-05:00

Ah yes, another take on the infamous “7 Habits…”!&nbsp; Below are some thoughts on why statistics are just as important as good husbandry techniques for adequately managing a shelter population.&nbsp; Statistics are more than just an afterthought, or “I’ll get to them as some point” kind of mentality, and need to be added to the forefront of shelter operations.&nbsp; Capturing good data and

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-17577569543796519342012-03-09T10:09:00.001-06:002013-01-22T15:18:15.159-06:00

*How will this kitten group affect the overall shelter's LOS?&nbsp; While we have discussed length of stay (LOS) in a few different contexts already, we have yet to talk about the myriad of ways it can be calculated and what information each of those calculations lends to managing an animal populations.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Similar to calculations for human patients in a hospital, LOS in its

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-42096512271390707592012-02-16T15:27:00.000-06:002012-02-16T15:29:41.902-06:00

*Warning—slightly controversial post below, read at your own risk! I recently stumbled onto a fantastic blog dedicated to interesting correspondences, and while perusing through the posts hit the jackpot when I found a letter from children’s book author E.B. White written to the ASPCA back in 1951.&nbsp; Apparently, he was cited for harboring an unlicensed dog and his amusing response to the

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-73047763291877579292012-02-06T15:58:00.000-06:002012-02-06T16:12:19.743-06:00

I don’t think anyone would argue if I made the blanket statement that all shelters are on a limited budget and must carefully apportion their resources in order to manage their animal population best.&nbsp; In that spirit, one of the most important resource allocations a shelter makes is deciding how many staff are required to clean and feed the animals in its population.&nbsp; Too many staff

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-54969516298106384992012-01-24T21:20:00.000-06:002012-01-24T21:20:25.900-06:00

One of the many benefits that has emerged from the growing cooperation of humane societies and animal welfare organizations in the past decade is the concept of transferring animals from one organization to another.&nbsp; Many open admissions and municipal facilities depend on transfer programs to increase live release rates, and most smaller rescue and limited admissions shelters only pull

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-34127486514808236502012-01-11T22:27:00.001-06:002012-01-12T08:05:43.020-06:00

While important to know, tracking and reporting absolute animal intake and outcome numbers for a defined period of time (weekly, monthly, annually) is only useful to a point.&nbsp; Certainly, when composing direct mail campaigns to raise awareness and money for your organization it is relevant to report total intake and disposition numbers as a measure of the impact you have on the community,

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-90456506607769193712011-12-27T20:55:00.001-06:002011-12-27T20:57:44.071-06:00

Photo courtesy of Chris Tanaka Cats are not meant to be in a shelter environment (dogs for that matter either, but more on that in a later post); even the most well adjusted cat is measurably miserable in a shelter.&nbsp; Our job as shelter professionals is to minimize their misery while they are in our care.&nbsp; Below are some simple, and very low cost kennel enrichment ideas for cats:

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-22479552571931695122011-12-05T23:48:00.001-06:002011-12-06T19:15:01.134-06:00

Regardless of the specific mission of a shelter or rescue, I am confident in saying the heart of the majority of animal welfare organizations is to provide either prevention or intervention services (and in most cases, both) for the animals it takes under its wing.&nbsp; At the most basic level, all shelter services, programs, or departments can be filed into either category (*sometimes they

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-81090214771054887202011-11-23T15:25:00.001-06:002011-11-23T15:30:36.806-06:00

Can’t decide what to get your staff or favorite volunteers this holiday season?&nbsp; Look no further than the Feral Cat Hat!!!&nbsp; To the average consumer, this is just another winter hat, but to those of us in the know, this is the most awesome fedora ever!&nbsp; A perfect and subtle way to promote TNR, animal welfare, feline pride, and a bonus that some of the proceeds from the sales are

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-65782022652020729682011-11-13T22:44:00.001-06:002011-11-23T14:29:55.493-06:00

I have spent most of my animal welfare career managing a volunteer department, and I still remember the comment that was said to me by a board member on the first day I took over the program at the shelter I was working.&nbsp; When my boss introduced me as the new volunteer coordinator, the board member said, “Oh, you have a tough job, we can’t live with volunteers and we can’t live without

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-71912816982610974152011-11-07T22:39:00.002-06:002011-11-23T14:28:29.975-06:00

The live release rate is a very telling metric in measuring a shelter’s progress towards improving dispositions for the animals in its care.&nbsp; Literally translated, a live release is any animal that leaves your shelter alive.&nbsp; Options for live release include: (1)&nbsp; adoptions (2)&nbsp; return to owner (RTO) (3)&nbsp; transfers (4)&nbsp; TNR—or feral colony placement Simply

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-3533683794648445312011-11-02T18:41:00.000-05:002011-11-23T14:28:42.879-06:00

One of the cornerstones of the animal welfare industry is its goal to place unwanted animals in forever homes.&nbsp; Permanent placement of the unwanteds is what draws the majority of traffic to a shelter—potential adopters, donors, supporters, etc.&nbsp; At the very least, this high profile function of an animal shelter should be in working order, if not near perfection.&nbsp; In that spirit,

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3414818433903159435.post-3371443985394841312011-10-04T21:29:00.000-05:002011-11-23T14:25:27.020-06:00

Welcome to the Shelter Report!&nbsp; As stated above, this is a blog dedicated to discussing emerging trends and central concepts of animal sheltering and welfare.&nbsp; This blog is written for sheltering professionals and staff with a special emphasis for the Chicago area, but the ideas can easily be extrapolated to communities anywhere.&nbsp; I will take what I’ve learned in the past seven

Darlene Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01247315739228026617noreply@blogger.com0