Although we work with clients across the country, we are also committed to making a difference in our own community. And because SEOM is full of animal lovers, we wanted to help out at a local animal shelter.
The Women’s Animal Center’s missions is simple: “As America’s First Animal Shelter, we are committed to protecting the interests of animals and offering a continuum of care to ensure that all animals are treated humanely with kindness and respect. As the only open-admissions Animal Shelter in Lower Bucks County, Pennsylvania, WAC accepts all animals found or surrendered to us, regardless of age, breed, size or health.We provide shelter, veterinary care, behavior training, rescue transfer, and adoption services for over 3,000 animals in need each year, and further assist our community through lost and found services, whereby we reunite hundreds of lost pets with their families annually.”
Donating Goods
We started by collecting donations for a month before our volunteer date and wound up donating 200 pounds of dog food, a variety of dog toys, cat food, and 8 dog beds!
Donating Time
To ensure the shelter and the animals weren’t overwhelmed by all the new faces, we split our employee volunteers into two shifts – a morning and afternoon group. During the morning shift, a handful of SEOM employees took photographs of the pets to help the Women’s Animal Center promote their adoptable pets. This was a great exercise not only for the photos, but so the animals could socialize with unfamiliar people, which helps prepare them for adoption.
During the afternoon shift, our employees focused on dog socialization and preparing beds for the shelter. When newer animals come into the shelter, they’re typically nervous and confused by their surroundings. Because of this, the Women’s Animal Center likes to provide them with a little extra socialization and love to make adapting to their new setting easier, and to set them up for success when meeting a stranger who will hopefully adopt them. Our staff spent about a half an hour with each dog, and it was so rewarding to watch these pups become more and more comfortable with strangers as time went on.
Takeaways
The SEOM team couldn’t have been happier to donate our time to such a special organization! We support the organization’s mission and hope to visit and donate our time again in the future. The best part of it all- some of our SEOM employees might have found their fur-ever friend!
March 6, 2019