Thanksgiving Greetings from Volunteer Services! November 22, 2021

Greetings Volunteers,

Happy early Thanksgiving! We hope you get a chance to visit with family and friends and companion animals. It’s a great time of year to soak in the spirit of thankfulness, giving, and gratitude. We are beyond grateful to all the Marin Humane volunteers!! You amaze and inspire us every day :).

Shelter update: We currently have 182 animals in our care: 69 animals in foster and 113 animals in the shelter. The shelter residents include: 21 dogs, 3 puppies, 45 cats, 12 kittens, 7 rabbits, 8 guinea pigs, 11 rodents, 5 reptiles,  and 1 fowl. 

Adoptions update: Welcome to another beautiful Monday and a slideshow full of happy animals and their new families! In the spirit of Thanksgiving week we’re feeling extra thankful for all the adopters out there. And if you’re still on the search for the perfect pet we’ve got lots of “littles” available for adoption from guinea pigs to hamsters and rabbits! Check out all of the small companion animals awaiting their forever homes here. Check out the Adoption Report for full details of who went home in time for T-Day :).

Holiday Pet Food Drive: Can you imagine giving up your pet simply because you couldn’t afford food or veterinary care? Sadly, many people in our community are faced with that very real dilemma. But we can change that. Help us fill our shelves with pet food for hundreds of Marin pets whose guardians are facing tough times. We’re supporting more than 600 Marin families through our Pet Safety Net and Pet Care Assistance programs, and with your donations, treasured pets will get to stay in their loving homes. There are three easy ways to help!

• Buy an electronic gift card from Amazon, Pet Food Express, Target, or Safeway and send it contactless to petfooddrive@marinhumane.org. We can then buy the needed food.
• Buy an item (or two!) from our Amazon wish list and it’ll be delivered directly to us.
• Drop off pet food donations or gift cards in the donation barrels in front of the shelter. Items of greatest need are dry cat food, canned cat food, and canned dog food.

If you are thinking about helping the pet food drive, right now we also need small bags of cat treats and any size dog treats. Our student service clubs will be assembling the holiday bags for the pets in our Pet Care Assistance program on November 30th. Thank you for your support!!

High Five to the Feline Intervention Team! A huge shout out to the Feline Intervention Team! These volunteers (most are Cat Evaluators or Extra Care Cat Pet Pals) visit felines from the time they enter the shelter and are frightened or in need of medical care through the time when they are available for adoption or in some cases are placed as Career Cats. The FIT volunteers are an invaluable and much appreciated asset to the Feline Behavior Office. We could not do this without them. Every note that is written about each individual cat gives Beth and Paula insight into how that cat responds/reacts to the individuals visiting them. 

The FIT feedback is a different vibe than what the shelter staff offers us (although that is important too); these volunteers are devoted to bringing the best out of each individual cat during possibly the lowest point in their lives. Sometimes these notes are accompanied by videos and photos which provide new insight into a feline’s behavior. FIT volunteers are frequently the first to notice sneezing or vomiting, which helps in getting prompt medical attention. Their behavior notes are entered into Shelter Buddy by volunteer Anni Black, which gives all staff (vet, animal care, adoptions, foster), more insight into each cat’s behavior and what the best foster or home situation might be for them. It is fabulous to see progression of these kitties through the notes. 

Again, we cannot express how much we appreciate the time the Feline Intervention Team volunteers help our shelter cats on their journey to a new home. ~ Beth Weil & Paula Skelton, Feline Behavior 

Tails of Marin: Speaking of cats, November is Adopt a Senior Cat month. Older shelter cats are just as loving, loyal, and delightful as young ones, but typically the last to be adopted. Read more about the benefits of adopting a senior kitty in this week’s Tails of Marin. This photo is of Wendell, a 12 year old orange tabby available for adoption, who loves petting, chin & cheek scratches and lap sits. A sweet, affectionate cat with non-stop purrs, what could be better than that!

Candace and Anne