Volunteers at the Sandton SPCA work tirelessly to help care for many stray and abandoned animals and raise funds to provide them with the best possible care. This is the second instalment in a series of articles about the volunteers at the Sandton SPCA. The first article, Volunteers dedicate their time to help animals [Week ending 12 April] highlighted the volunteers in the SPCA’s charity store.
The volunteers who work with the animals each week work through a roster of animals to ensure that each dog and cat in their care have the opportunity to run around the yard and interact with people and other animals.
The volunteers who work with the dogs each week are mostly regulars and have been visiting the SPCA for years. Most of the volunteers have been unable to resist the charms of their furry friends at the SPCA and have adopted many animals, particularly those who have been at the SPCA for a long time.
Carly Graeme, a long-time volunteer at the SPCA, explained that all the information about each dog is laid out on a table and each volunteer has the chance to take a dog out of its kennel and walk it around the yard. Graeme added that the volunteers are also responsible for testing the sociability of the new dogs and taking photographs of them to help build a profile to get them adopted.
“We try to teach some of the dogs basic obedience, just so they become slightly more adoptable because I think there is a stigma that dogs that come from here are unruly and rough and sometimes that’s true but so many of these dogs are just sweethearts.”
Graeme highlighted that there are many different types of adopters and they try to make sure that animals are well matched with their prospective owners. Some animals who have been subject to abuse or have been strays their whole life typically require owners who understand how to nurture rescued animals while other dogs are far more easy-going.
Many of the volunteers care for animals that pull on their heartstrings and it’s always an occasion for celebration when they find a loving home. “It’s the best feeling when people realise that the reward [of adopting an animal] is so massive, especially when you see how some of these dogs have been rehabilitated.”
Nicole Merzbacher, who until recently was a volunteer and has now become an employee of the SPCA, said that they really would like to encourage more people to volunteer. “It’s a calling and I don’t think that everyone is drawn to it but those who are, are so special,” said Merzbacher.
Details: Sandton SPCA 011 444 7730.
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