Volunteer Links

(check dirty laundry baskets in the grooming room and Cat Parlor; check outdoor exercise/play yards, dirty toy bucket next to the utility closet, and socialization rooms for dirty toys).

Restock the grooming room with towels and Cat Parlor with cat mats/small blankets from the storage room when needed. Restock large socialization room cabinets with clean towels and rags from the storage room when needed. Restock socialization rooms and Cat Parlor with clean toys if needed. Please do not distribute bedding or toys into kennels; fill out a Volunteer Concern Form if you see a dog you believe requires extra bedding (e.g. small dogs, puppies, senior dogs, etc.).

(leaves, trash, etc.). In nice weather, dump and refill plastic dog pools and water dishes throughout the day as the water gets dirty. Dump the poop bucket out in the dumpster. Please pick up any poop left in the play yards. All dirty toys need to be taken to the laundry room. Make sure all gates are closed to protect them from wind damage. See the Volunteer Coordinator about refilling empty waste bag stations.

Wearing gloves, remove all hair from brushes (Insider’s tip: Use the awesome vacuum cleaner located on the wall of the grooming room! Works like a charm!), then disinfect. Spray each brush individually with the grooming room cleaner spray bottle (bleach and water mixture or Rescue). Lay out a towel (located in a tub in the grooming room) and place wet brushes on it to dry; once dry, put rubber brushes back in the “CLEAN” bin. Other brushes go with like brushes in the drawers to the right of the sink.

(light yellow film) from the walls in A using warm water, dish soap, and rags. See the Volunteer Coordinator or Margaret for supplies.

This involves walking along the front of the dog kennels and rewarding good behavior. If a dog is sitting quietly, say “Good Quiet,” and drop in a treat. If they are barking and/or jumping, wait until they are calm, then reward them. It’s great to sit and read for a few minutes at a time in A between “Good Quiet” rounds to get dogs used to peoples’ presence.

by completing Volunteer Concern Forms (located on volunteer room name badge bookshelf, in Cat Parlor drawer, large socialization room drawers, A drawer, and in the Volunteer Coordinator’s mailbox—if any of these areas are missing forms, get some from the Volunteer Coordinator and distribute) and clipping them to the VC’s mailbox (located on the wall directly outside of that office). Report all animal emergencies immediately.

(sweep and mop volunteer room, organize treats/toys/etc. in volunteer room, organize volunteer drawers in A and Cat Parlor, etc.).

Send them to the Communications Coordinator for the website or social media (again, please don’t pet/open kennels in A or condos in Cat Parlor). You may also post these videos or pictures in the HHHS Team Facebook group.

(printed brochures and kennel signs are often found in the volunteer room when help is needed). If there are no printed brochures, find an administrative team member to ask if more brochures/kennel signs are needed.

(usually found in the volunteer room fridge/freezer) and place them in Ziploc bags in the fridge. Break large dog treats (jerky, bacon strips, large milk bones) into small pieces and place them in Ziploc bags on the treat shelf.

Supplies should be found in a drawer in the volunteer room or on the table. We can never express enough how appreciative we are when people choose to adopt and save a life.

Their small water dishes often get accidentally dumped or a blanket will get in the dish and soak up all the water. We have a watering can in Cat Parlor for this very purpose. If you are able to block the cat in their litter box cubby, please remove any soaked/soiled blankets, put them in the dirty laundry basket, and replace them with a clean, dry blanket from the upper right cabinet. If you can’t, fill out a Volunteer Concern Form about it.

Smudges make animals less presentable to potential adopters. Using spray bottles of vinegar/water mix (spray bottles can be found in the volunteer room and vinegar/water mixture is kept in a large pump container in the utility closet next to the outdoor play yard) and newspaper, clean the outer and inner sides of the glass (whatever is dirty) in A dog kennels. Always close dogs on the backside of their kennels before opening the front door to clean the inner side of the glass. Remember to open the separator when you’re done! You may also clean the outside of Octagon glass and any other glass doors or windows that appear to be dirty in the adoption areas. Please do not use vinegar on the Cat Parlor plastic windows; they require special cleaner so they don’t get foggy and are cleaned by staff daily.

if necessary (paper towels, soap, volunteer concern forms, pens, gloves, towels, rags, etc.). Clean any dirty dishes, straighten up the drawers, under the sink, and the cabinets. Please only return bottles labeled “VINEGAR Please Return to Volunteer Coordinator” to the volunteer room; other cleaning products should be left where they are found.

(white benches—check tops and legs for pee, pen marks, etc., door handles, public countertops, lobby chairs, brochure holder, clipboards, drawer handles, etc.). You may use any bottles labeled “disinfectant” found under sink areas for this, just always return bottles to their designated areas.

from outside of A kennels or Cat Parlor condos.

(socialization rooms, front lobby, Pocket Pets room, laundry room, hallways, etc.). Brooms and mops can be found in the utility closets. Remember to keep the A mop and bucket in A only and the Cat Parlor mop and bucket in Cat Parlor only. Use supplies from the nearest utility closet for public areas.

kept in the storage room and throw away any that are falling apart (if any pieces are coming off or they are severely chewed up, they could be a danger to our animals’ health). Also carefully go through any stuffed animals/toys in storage. Stuffed animals containing beans can only be given to cats. Hard pieces like buttons, eyes, electronic pieces, etc. should be removed. If they cannot be removed without ruining the toy, please throw the toy away or, if in good condition, bring it to the Volunteer Coordinator’s office to be donated elsewhere.

See Margaret or the Volunteer Coordinator for supplies to braid rope toys for the dogs. If there are empty toilet paper tubes in the volunteer room, use scissors to cut these into rings, create treat-distributing toys (Google it!), or develop some other cat enrichment item. Please do not put more than five treats in each cat treat-distributing toy.

This works best for the dogs in A, the cats in the Cat Colonies, and animals in the Octagon. Take construction paper found in the volunteer room. Cut it into small rectangles. Write a dog’s basic information (name, animal ID, sex, age, and any other important or interesting facts) on the cards and decorate them however you’d like. Put these in the plastic kennel card sleeve for potential adopters to take with them.

after a dog is adopted. When a kennel is empty immediately following an adoption (you can ask Adoption Counselors if there are any empty kennels in A), get a rag and bucket of soapy water from the volunteer or storage room. Wipe down the kennel walls, on top of the metal doors/walls, under the bottoms of the gates/walls, and anywhere else you see grime. The kennels are sprayed down and sanitized each day, but don’t get hand-scrubbed as often.

You can be trained to do laundry at any time (contact Katie). If you are not yet trained, but someone who is trained in working in the laundry room, you can offer to assist them (folding, stocking, sorting, etc.).

and return them to the volunteer room. All bottles labeled “VINEGAR Please Return to Volunteer Coordinator” should be kept in the volunteer room as well as hands-free volunteer treat pouches, clean KONGs, donated toilet paper rolls, etc. Poop bags, newspaper, plastic bags, etc. may be distributed throughout the building for volunteer use, but should be kept organized and tidy.

You will need instruction the first time you do this; get with the Volunteer Coordinator to schedule a time with her.

Empty shoe boxes and cardboard boxes found in the volunteer room can be turned into houses/tunnels/etc. for small animals. Cut doorways and openings, decorate, and get creative!

Basic info is posted on Cat Parlor condos on colorful pieces of paper. Compare that info to the cat’s profile to make sure it is up-to-date. Make a list of those that don’t match up as well as those who need a cat head and give to Marrissa or the Adoption Counselors.

Walk through adoption areas and make sure kennel paperwork looks nice (not torn, crumpled, wet, etc.). Clean out any plastic sleeves that look dirty (treat crumbs, left-behind signs, multiple pens, etc.). Make a list of any that should be reprinted/updated and give to Marrissa or the Adoption Counselors. Make sure the little laminated sheet with red/green dogs is behind the papers (this just signals to staff which kennels need to be clean after a dog has been adopted)