I just went through training to become a dog-walker at my local animal shelter here in Bloomington and let me tell you, I am so excited about hanging out with adorable dogs for a few hours each week! I 100 percent encourage any and all college students to donate a little bit of their time every week, because not only will it benefit the pooches but it’ll benefit you as well!
1. You miss your animals from home. Whether you have cats, dogs, hamsters, rabbits or whatever at home, when you’re here at college you’re bound to miss them, especially if you’re living in a dorm room where they don’t allow pets. This is the perfect opportunity to play with some puppies, kittens and rabbits and maybe feel a little bit less sad about not being trampled by your dog and covered with slobbery kisses every time you walk through your front door.
2. Stress relief. Once you walk through those front doors, all of your stress disappears for a few hours. It’s basically a college student’s heaven. You’re not going to be thinking about upcoming tests and studying, you are solely focused on having an awesome (and safe) time with the animals. I would do just about anything to not be stressed out for a few hours, and the fact that I get to hang out with animals is icing on the cake!
3. They’re always happy to see you. These poor guys have been locked up in their cages all day being told what to do, so when they see somebody that just wants to pet them and play with them, their eyes light up. I’m telling you, the amount of excitement coursing through these dogs' veins is seriously one of the best things you will see all week.
4. Shelters wouldn’t be able to function the way they do without volunteers. I’ve talked to different shelter staff, including the shelter’s director, and they all emphasize how they would not be able to function properly without volunteers. Alone, the staff just does not have enough time to walk every single dog multiple times a day, feed every animal, care for sick animals and handle the adoption process and every other miniscule item on their to-do list. And that’s where the volunteers come in. Unfortunately for the staff members and fortunately for us, we get the fun part of the job. All we really have to do is play with the animals, give them some food and exercise, and make sure they’re safe and happy. Easy-peasy.
5. You’re giving back to your community. College towns do a lot for their college students, so it’s always nice to give back when you have a chance. By volunteering, you are helping the shelter run smoothly. This means less stray animals running around town, the shelter can focus more on finding home for their animals, and so on.
6. You’re helping the animals become more adoptable. Any kind of interaction is going to benefit those animals. If you’re handling the cats a lot, they’re going to be more open to hanging out with their future families - the same goes for the dogs. When you’re taking the dogs on walks, you’re teaching them how to safely have fun with people around and how to be less timid around strangers.
7. You’re helping make life in a cage a little more bearable. The unfortunate reality is that these poor animals are stuck in cages for a good portion of their time at the shelter, and the longer they’ve been there, the more daunting the cage can feel. So if you’re hanging out and talking to the cats or the dogs while they’re in their cage, you’re making life a little bit more exciting and bearable for them.
8. Who knows, you might just find your own future pet. I mean, you’re surrounded by totally lovable animals for hours, how can you not find that one special animal that you want to keep forever?! It’s nearly impossible, trust me I’ve already picked out about 15 of my future dogs, and I’ve only just started here! There are literally no ways in which you and the animals cannot benefit from you volunteering there.
