By: Jim Harvey
I’ve been volunteering at the Winnipeg Humane Society for some time, working with the dogs once a week. I often mention to people I meet that I volunteer at the Winnipeg Humane Society and a very common response is, “Oh, I could not do that. I’d want to take all the dogs home with me.”
I often think to myself that if that were to happen, us folks who volunteer would have very crowded homes! But I understand the comment. They are saying they feel for the dogs and their situations and would like to take a dog home and give it stability and love so the dog can feel happy and secure.
While every dog is different, I find the dogs that I work with generally seem to fall into one of two types. The first types are the dogs who jump with excitement when I come near. They can hardly wait for that door to open, to be able get out, and have some contact with me.
The second type of dog that I encounter are more hesitant. Sometimes you open the door and they go to the back of the kennel to get as far away from me as possible. They are unsure and require patience and time to gain their trust. Sometimes, it takes a few attempts. But after turning the corner and gaining that trust, it feels like we can be friends forever.
It is always a gratifying feeling once the connection is made and the trust is granted. It is in this moment that I never cease to be amazed. Some dogs find the shelter very stressful. I think some must be confused about the situation they find themselves in. Others that I have met over the years have been chewed up by life. Yet there they are. Ready and willing to start fresh again with anyone who will take the time to make the connection.
It has struck me in the last while, that I treat each dog at the WHS in a very similar way that I treat my dog at home. I’ll squat down to their level and let them scooch right in so they can get in nice and close. Often as I’m squatting down I’ll say to the dog, “you tell me all about what’s going on”. I pet, scratch, and talk to them just as I do my own dog. I imagine what my life would be like with each dog at my side, what adventures we’d go on, the games we’d play, and the life we’d share.
And if dogs live in the moment, hopefully it is these moments that everything else that is going on around the two of us melts away. That the dog is able to put the stress of the shelter aside, feel the security of friendship, the warmth of some love, and just for those moments, feel like they are at home.
There is the saying, “home is where the heart is.” I’d like to make a change to this saying to read “home is within the heart.” All the dogs that I work with at the WHS are welcome. I take them all home.
Dogs are beautiful animals.