Blue Mountain Humane Society: Play Group Training Grant Report

How did this grant help your organization and the pets in your care?

A mentorship with Dog Playing for Life in Austin, TX, hosted by Austin Pets Alive!

The mentorship was to guide me to learn the Dog Playing for Life guidelines and playgroups. This has allowed me to come back to my shelter and implement playgroups almost daily. I came back and taught more staff members how to run playgroups so they can continue when I am unable to run a playgroup. Some staff members were here when DPFL came to our shelter, but many of us were not. Going to this mentorship helped me understand how a playgroup runs and how it benefits the dogs in the shelter. It has helped with adoptions as well. We have learned more about the dogs and helped them find homes with that knowledge.

How many pets did this grant help?

This will help at least 1,000 dogs as we continue through the year

Please provide a story of one or more specific pets this grant helped.

Buddy was a pit bull who came to us as a stray. Pit bulls can be harder to place, as they are pretty common in most shelters. Buddy held out his stray period, was neutered, and then moved to the adoption floor. After healing from his surgery, he was able to be in a playgroup. He did great! After just two playgroups, a gentleman was watching the playgroup and decided Buddy was the dog for him. He adopted him! It was all thanks to the playgroup. The adopter had no dogs at home, and wasn’t even looking for a dog when he came by the dog park that day. The playgroup got his attention and Buddy found a home. It was a good day!