Wednesday, November 30, 2011

November's Volunteer of the Month



Mona


Who comes to the shelter almost every day, doesn't complain about a thing, works tirelessly with nearly every dog, and never has a spat with anyone? We all know who. It's everyone's favorite Rottie - the lovely Mona. Thanks for being such a great helper Mona!

What do you do when you're not at the shelter?

I would say that my primary activity (if you can call it that) is sleeping. After a long day of volunteering, I really need to get my beauty sleep. Nobody looks this good by accident. I also like to eat breakfast and dinner. Throw in some peeing and pooping, and I call that a full day.

Why did you initially decide to volunteer at BACS?

The main goal was to get out of Amelia’s house for a few hours a day. Do you know how many dogs live there? It’s just plain crazy. I like dogs as much as the next dog, but sometimes I need a break.

So I thought I'd give the shelter a try. There are still a lot of dogs of course, but it's fun to see all the new faces. And the people are always so nice to me too. I don't even mind the cats.



What are your favorite things about volunteering?

There are so many great things about the shelter. First of all, I love all the staff. They really know how to treat a dog right. And it’s fun to say hi to all the volunteers. But without a doubt my favorite part about volunteering is all the extra treats I get. It seems like everyone wants to give me a little snack. I know Amelia wants to limit my treat intake, but I’m here to tell everybody to ignore her. If you think I’m getting pudgy just throw me into the play area with Joey for awhile. I'll sit, look cute, whatever you want. As long as the treat winds up in my stomach, I'm game.

Who are your favorite dogs, past and present?

Number one would definitely be Shifty. He would really be mad at me if I didn’t say that. I used to think I knew what I was doing in life, but thank goodness Shifty has come along to show me how to improve. Howard and I were great friends too. He’d go along with any crazy idea I came up with. I’m so glad he went off to a good home.

Among the current shelter dogs, I love Galloway. He's fun to wrestle with in the play area. We just made a video together, not sure if you saw it. Dozer and Joey are also good pals of mine. But I'm OK with pretty much any dog. Just look at the crew I have to deal with!

Sunday, November 13, 2011

BAD RAP class videos

Here are a couple of videos my lovely wife shot at class today. What you can't see in the videos is that we had a bunch of shelter representatives from the Society of Animal Welfare Administrators on hand to observe. SAWA is having a conference in San Francisco this week, and without a doubt the highlight for them will be a visit to BAD RAP class to watch our BACS dogs show their stuff. A few of the visitors are visible in the background, but there were at least 100 people on hand. Just watch our dogs ham it up!

We're working on our "downs" here.

You can see Mari and Leroy showing off their "roll over".

DeAnna brought Pluto for his first class, he's showing a lot of potential.

Jupiter is a little too enthusiastic, but he's learning quickly and I'll have him in shape in no time.

Joey is pulling his usual trick of not going "down" for Linda unless he is 100% sure that he will get a treat for it.

Anne and Fancy, Christina and Ruger, Andy and Dozer, Shelley and Molly, and David and Faline are also on display.

See if you recognize former BACS puppy Kale, now full-grown and named Daddy-O. His adopter Lisa has been bringing him every week.



Tuesday, November 1, 2011

BAD RAP Action

Lots of dogs and handlers are doing good work at class, let's take roll call:

DeAnna gives some personal instruction to Ethan.



Faline does a perfect "down" for David.



Molly and Shelley have the hang of it too.



Dozer does a not-as-perfect "down" for Andy. Dozer likes to take a bit of creative license when following commands!



Jill and Bagel take a break.



Caroline has turned Galloway into a rising class star.



See you next week Anne and Fancy!



I had Jupiter this week. What a fun guy he is! He needs some work but this was only his first class. He had a great time.



Godiva, Joey, Leroy, and Blue are also class regulars. Stop by anytime to watch your favorite dogs in action! And you can see some former BACS dogs whose adopters continue to bring them to class. 11:30 - 12:30 on Sundays in the parking lot right next to the shelter.