Suze's WCAC Stories: Has it really been since May ...

I can't believe it's been a month since I last posted about the WCAC.

My paparazzi volunteering has been rather sporadic over the last several weeks. I was finally able to spend time the last two Thursdays … it is always good to get back.

I’ve been working the Dog Stray room these last two Thursdays, which is the first room dogs come into when they get to the center; this means that they’ve only been at the Center for a day or two and to them it can be a scary place.

Lita (53578) - Her First Week at the WCAC

Her Second Week

Lita was a perfect example of that. When I went to take her first photo she was pressed up against the side of her kennel (her “bad side” towards the camera) and I don’t think I was even able to convince her to take a treat. It was only her second day at the Center after being surrendered by her family and the whole experience was too much for her. A week later, I was going through the room to see who needed to be on my list that night and I noticed that her eye looked 100% better, so I decided to get some new photos. She was a different dog. She came right up to me and when I sat on the floor with her she crawled in my lap and used her pointy little nose to flip my hand and ask for a pet.

I also have to say how much I appreciate what I learned from the Start Them Right training folks earlier this year. Not only did Tippi and I get our pet therapy dog certification, but I learned a lot about recognizing what a dog is “feeling.” I was able to identify when a couple of dogs were really – I mean really – stressed out by my being in their kennel with my camera. Before that class I wouldn’t have recognized yawning in a dog as a stress indicator. Thanks guys!

Snoopy (ID: 42841)

There have been some really beautiful Pittie mixes the last couple of weeks – all of them either super sweet or super shy. I think I’ll just leave you with the photos of these beauties and more.