Working with Challenging Volunteers
Webinar Speaker: Hilary Hager, Director of Volunteer Engagement, The Humane Society of the United States
Taping Date: June 18, 2014
Length: 60 minutes
Volunteers are essential to the operation of most animal protection groups, and a well-run program is key to organizations’ success. Sometimes, however, coordinating the people who are called to volunteer on behalf of animals can be a challenge. This workshop explores ways organizations can help set clear expectations and structure within which volunteers can flourish, as well as to provide ways volunteer managers can directly address and resolve the issues that come up along the way.
Keep Pets in Homes with a Pet Retention Hotline
Webinar Speaker: Joyce Friedman, LMSW, Program Manager, Pet Help Partners, The Humane Society of the United States
Taping Date: May 29, 2014
Length: 60 minutes
Owner surrenders and returns can lead to an overwhelming number of animals to rehome, when many sources of pet frustration are solvable problems. This webinar will discuss The Humane Society of the United States’ pet retention program, which offers guidance, as well as free and low cost resources, to keep pets and people together. You will learn how to stretch your reach beyond your own rescue organization to help the entire community, and their pets, before they are faced with being surrendered.
Finding Fido and Fluffy: Pet Reunification in the 21st Century
Webinar Speaker: Brian A. DiGangi, DVM, MS, DABVP, Clinical Assistant Professor of Shelter Medicine, University of Florida
Taping Date: March 25, 2014
Length: 60 minutes
This webinar will review the importance of proper pet identification in the prevention and reunification of lost dogs and cats. The pros and cons of different identification methods, such as collars, tags, and microchips will be discussed in light of current scientific best practices. Tools to help shelters maximize their return rates and tips for finding lost pets will be presented. Webinar participants will leave this session with a renewed passion for helping lost pets and the confidence that they are doing all they can to make lost pet reunifications a reality in their community
Helping Pets by Supporting People: A Comprehensive Approach to Community Welfare
Webinar Speaker: Kim Wolf, Founder of Beyond Breed
Taping Date: December 5, 2013
Length: 60 minutes
In every community certain pets are more “at risk” for entering the shelter system and less likely to be adopted. But the adoptable animals are just one part of this story: for every pet that ends up in the shelter, there is a human component as well. This webinar takes a holistic approach to helping “at risk” adoptable animals by understanding the challenges and barriers facing people in our communities, especially those that threaten the human-animal bond. By moving our discussions beyond animal welfare to community welfare as a whole, we can implement a comprehensive approach that benefits people and pets alike.
Environmental Enrichment for Cats
Webinar Speaker: Emily Levine, DVM MRCVS DACVB of Animal Emergency & Referral Associates
Taping Date: November 21, 2013
Length: 60 minutes
Are your shelter cats bored? Learn different ways we can stimulate our cats and how that can be used to deal with some common behavior problems, or at least be incorporated into a behavioral plan to help cats. This webinar focuses on methods of enriching a cat’s environment as well as increasing mental stimulation. There will be discussion on what environmental enrichment actually is, and simply providing a toy may not constitute actual enrichment. There will be pictures and videos to help demonstrate techniques and highlight different products.
Saving Lives with Behavior Programs
Webinar Speaker: Kim Melanson, Behavior Counselor CPDT-KA
Taping Date: October 23, 2013
Length: 60 minutes
The implementation of behavior programs plays an important part in saving the lives of shelter dogs. This 60- minute webinar will provide an overview of tools, techniques and methods to improve the welfare of shelter dogs and how to find the best dog-adopter matches.
Pet Retention: Keeping Pets in Their Homes – A Primer for Shelters and Rescues
Webinar Speaker: Sam Wike, CPDT-KA
Taping Date: September 18, 2013
Length: 60 minutes
We all want to ensure the best outcome possible for dogs in our shelters. We will examine what is done during the time an adoptable dog is in a shelter or foster environment, through the follow-up with adopters. In addition to sharing procedures for working toward a solution to prevent pet relinquishment, we will discuss pairing the right adoptable pet with a potential adopter to create an initial bond and a longstanding relationship, hopefully preventing these relinquishments in the future.
Are You Really “Fixing” the Problem?
Webinar Speaker: Stephanie Downs, President of the Board for FiXiT Foundation
Taping Date: September 4, 2013
Length: 60 minutes
Any “fix” is a good one, but do you know the impact your work is actually having? Is your schedule filled with people from the highest intake areas? Are your marketing dollars being spent wisely? Stephanie Downs with FiXiT is implementing cutting edge solutions to answer these questions and bring an end to pet overpopulation faster. Watch this webinar to hear about the program they have developed to research, strategize, and track to ensure your program has the most impact.
Behavior Modification for Cats in a Shelter Environment
Webinar Speaker: Kerrie McKeon, The Cat Sleuth
Taping Date: Tuesday, Aug 27, 2013
Length: 60 minutes
Cats in a shelter or foster environment face unique environmental and behavioral challenges. Sometimes, despite our best efforts, these cats develop behavior problems that limit their adoptability. Others come to us with pre-existing handling or sociability issues that present their own unique challenges. This workshop offers simple and effective behavior modification plans for the most common of these problems. Each protocol is designed to be user friendly with the needs of the future adopter in mind!
Increase Adoptions and Improve Customer Service with Conversational Adoption Counseling
Webinar Speaker: Linda Reider, Director of Statewide Initiatives for the Michigan Humane Society
Taping Date: August 14, 2013
Length: 60 minutes
Are you looking for a way to increase your adoptions, while still sticking to the core adoption values of your organization? Join us to learn the nuts and bolts of how to use conversational adoption counseling to achieve friendlier customer service in adoptions, while at the same time assuring quality adoptions. This webinar will include history of the conversational method, and also review understanding adopters, understanding adoption counselors, recommended phrasing, and volunteer training. Register today to get the tools to start saving more lives!
Advocacy 101: Strategies for Challenging Discriminatory Dog Laws
Webinar Speaker: Kim Wolf, Founder of Beyond Breed
Taping Date: Friday, July 12, 2013
Length: 60 minutes
Is your community considering laws that target certain dog breeds (i.e., breed specific legislation)? Are you trying to repeal discriminatory laws already on the books? Whether you work for a shelter, run a rescue, or own a dog, this presentation offers strategies for effectively advocating for safe and humane communities for people and pets alike. While the focus is on challenging breed-specific legislation, the concepts can be applied to many types of animal welfare advocacy and community organizing. It will also benefit advocates working on behalf of pit bull dogs, both in shelters and in the community. The presentation will draw from the fields of marketing, psychology, political science, public relations, and sociology.
Harnessing the Power of Social Media to Increase Pet Adoptions
Webinar Speaker: Emily Garman, Founder of TheSocialAnimal.com
Taping Date: Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Length: 60 minutes
Chances are, we’ve all had a dog or cat in need cross our Facebook page at least a FEW times…lost/found dogs, cats needing rescue, “time’s up” posts of animals in danger of euthanasia…Clearly animal welfare personnel, volunteers and civilians alike are using social media to spread the word about animals who need help. But how can the general, well-meaning public sort through the dozens they may see every day, and know what they can really DO to make a difference? How and why do adopters decide on an animal to adopt? How can you make YOUR posts stand out from the crowd and be noticed and shared? This webinar focuses on how to use social media as a tool to increase adoptions. In honor of Petfinder’s I’m a Cat Parent Month, we’ll focus on cat adoptions in particular; they can be even more difficult than dog adoptions, in most areas. If you’re willing to invest some time and energy on the web (or have a volunteer eager to do so!), you can find more adopters and save more lives. (And if you need help finding a volunteer to help you, we’ve got some ideas for that as well!) This webinar assumes that you have basic knowledge of the Internet and social media, and that your organization has a page on Facebook.
Thinking Outside the Kennel: Proven Ways to Increase Adoptions
Webinar Speaker: Aimee Gilbreath, Found Animals Foundation, Inc.
Taping Date: March 21, 2012
Length: 60 minutes
Private groups and individuals all over the country are looking for ways to help boost adoption numbers. Learn about four fantastic, cost effective approaches that can boost shelter adoptions in your community, even without a facility or a foster network. These programs have been road tested in Los Angeles and each one saves hundreds of animals a year!
Helping Homeless Senior Dogs
Webinar Speaker: Erika Mathews, Grey Muzzle Organization & St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center
Taping Date: November 16, 2011
Length: 60 minutes
Join us to help celebrate Adopt-A-Senior-Pet Month! Do you want to know how to add some enrichment to a senior’s life? Or perhaps what to consider when finding a new home for a senior pet, how to find the perfect adopters, and how to raise funds to help with medical needs? This webinar will answer your questions regarding senior pet adoption, behavior and care.
Overlooked Pets
Webinar Speaker: Linda Reider, Michigan Humane Society
Taping Date: September 7, 2012
Length: 60 minutes
Are there animals who have been waiting too long for adoption in your shelter or rescue program? Learn how to track and identify longtime pets, get the message out about them regularly to staff and volunteers, and put in place simple, effective tools to help overlooked pets get adopted. Download a PDF file of this presentation.
Enrichment for Dogs, Cats and Small Animals
Webinar Speaker: Becky Burton, St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center
Taping Date: September 21, 2012
Length: 60 minutes
“Enrichment on a Dime” demonstrates smart, creative, and economical methods to provide behavioral enrichment for the animals in our care. We will discuss and demonstrate ways that behavioral enrichment and stress reduction will directly impact the length of stay. Optimizing enrichment activities will not only enhance the animals’ well-being efficiently and effectively but produces behavior and attributes attractive to potential adopters. Download a PDF file of this presentation.