Placer County Animal Services: Orvis Dog Enrichment Grant Report

How did this grant help your organization and the pets in your care?

Money was used to purchase pet playground equipment, toys, beds and artwork to decorate an unused room at the shelter as a featured-dog room to showcase adoptable dogs and give them some quiet time out of the kennel.

Provides an additional space for a dog to spend some quiet time out of the kennel, but also gives the public a chance to see that dog outside of the kennel and get a better feel for their personality. It's a great way to market our dogs.

How many pets did this grant help?

We have used the room for more than 20 dogs and 10 of them have found their forever homes.

Please provide a story of one or more specific pets this grant helped.

Patty Pocket came into our shelter in December 2016. She tested positive for heartworm during her medical evaluation. Due to the long-term course of treatment and need for a pet to stay quiet, we decided to use our newly updated quiet room to give Patty Pocket a place to live outside of her kennel where she could spread out, play with toys and hang out with people. She did really well for the several months that she was in our shelter, in large part due to having a large and comfortable living space (in addition to regular walks and playtime with volunteers). Additionally, placing Patty Pocket in that room meant that she was the first dog that our visitors saw when they entered our lobby, which worked well for marketing. Ultimately, this room allowed Patty Pocket to stay mentally and physically healthy while in our care and also helped her to find her forever home.