As a longtime canine volunteer at the Santa Barbara Humane Society, my number one focus is on the care and comfort of the dogs. While dog play groups and environmental enrichment were in place when Kerri Burns was hired, it is nice to see continued positive improvements under our new director. She has developed partnerships with ASAP, CARE 4 Paws, DAWG, the Santa Barbara County Animal Services, the Santa Ynez Valley Humane Society, and Shadow’s Fund. Most exciting has been the trend to pull from more impacted shelters including Fresno Humane.
While the dogs are in our care, they receive excellent medical care from our vets and techs, and leave spayed/neutered with all their shots and micro-chips. While we will eventually have new kennels built, in the meantime we are making use of more outdoor AKCs. When suitable, the dogs are buddied up for companionship. They are offered a variety of cozy places to cuddle up and are given enrichment toys such as stuffed Kongs. Be sure and peek over the counter to see the office dog of the day.
A more extensive foster program has been developed, and the dogs go out to various locations including lunch walks at Decker’s and adoption events. The Humane Society continues to offer boarding, vet services, education, dog training, and rescue. So when you are thinking of adding a new family member, come by and check us out. Can’t have a dog? Become a volunteer.