| As we all struggle to keep up with the changing news about the coronavirus, one thing is clear — the COVID-19 pandemic will never change our love of animals. Since closing to the public in early March, we have been overwhelmed by the dedication of Seattle Humane staff, volunteers, and community supporters who have stepped up to help us develop innovative ways to continue saving lives and completing families. As an essential workforce and lifesaving organization as defined by Washington Governor Jay Inslee, we are waiting for the green light from health officials to return to normal operations. Until then, our top priority will remain focused on not only the lives of our shelter pets, but also our human friends — the people who make up this amazing community that has championed our cause for more than a century.
Here are a few of the changes we’ve made and why your support means so much at this time. From Shelter to Foster Closing our shelter to the public meant we had to find foster homes for our animals and FAST. We reached out to the community and the response was incredible. More than 1,200 people volunteered to foster — far more families than we could accommodate. Within a few short days, we had most of our shelter pets in foster homes. Today, all of our animals (around 200 total) are living it up in loving households, awaiting their adoption day. We’re still onboarding new foster parents, but prioritizing homes without children or other pets, who can care for dogs who need special attention and little stress. A New Way to Adopt — Putting Safety First The rollout of Seattle Humane’s new adoption-by-appointment system is bringing our mission of completing families back into focus. Potential adopters can complete an online application indicating their interest in a particular pet. If their application is first in line to be considered for the pet, an adoption advisor will call and have an in-depth conversation about the pet’s behavior, medical and transfer history. Detailed profiles of these pets from our amazing foster families will help our adoptions team facilitate perfect matches.
As news of the COVID-19 outbreak is constantly changing, so too must our safety and cleaning protocols around the shelter, ensuring that final step of safely connecting pets and their new families maintains proper social distancing for our foster families, potential adopters, and our hardworking Seattle Humane team.
We hope to accomplish this by providing a curbside pick-up option for cats, kittens, critters, puppies, and dogs who don’t require an in-person meeting with folks prior to adoption. People can come to the shelter for their new pet, wait in their vehicles, and one of our team members will bring the animals to them, either in a carrier or using a double-leash system. This process will keep humans safe while bringing pets and their new families together. Any dogs needing an in-person meeting will do so in one of our outside yards while wearing gloves and a medical gown that can be washed and safely reused.
A lot of time, care, and research went into crafting this new system, and we thank the hundreds of people who have filled out adoption applications for their patience as we adapt to meet the latest public health guidelines. Early Success  One advantage of fostering Seattle Humane’s shelter pets is that families are often falling in love and deciding they can’t part with our animals. “Foster fails” are always a win for Seattle Humane, and we’re happy to report that more than a dozen adoptions have been completed using our new system, including Ducky, a 6-month-old Saint Bernard with an incredible story. Expect to hear more about Ducky in the future. Seattle Humane Makes PPE Donation  With our shelter animals in foster care, Seattle Humane’s Veterinary Services team suspended all elective surgeries, procedures, and visits. We are providing a telemedicine model for foster pets needing ongoing care, and we are filling medications for up to 30 days, to reduce visits to the shelter. The suspension of non-essential surgeries and procedures meant a sharp decline in demand for personal protective equipment (PPE) at our clinic. With so many health care facilities struggling with a shortage of safety equipment, Seattle Humane answered the call by donating hundreds of suits, surgical masks, gloves and medical gowns — all to benefit the many doctors and nurses putting their lives at risk to save others. Watch the video here. Still Helping Animals in Need We’re happy to report that we still have the capacity to treat furry patients when an emergency arises. Seattle Humane veterinary staff stepped in to help two animals in need of emergency care late last month. One was a cat with a broken leg, and the other was a dog with painful bladder stones who required two surgeries to remove them all. Our staff did an incredible job coming to the aid of these pets, who are now recovering at home with their families. Pet Food Bank Gives and Receives Hundreds of individual clients and dozens of community partners benefit from our Pet Food Bank, which supplies free pet food and supplies to people who can’t afford these items. With so many in our community furloughed or terminated from their jobs, we’re expanding the reach of our Pet Food Bank so these families can afford to keep their pets healthy and at home.
We have 312 individual clients and 36 community partners who benefit from our Pet Food Bank, including senior centers, food banks, and low-income housing units. We put out a call and received 40 new service requests in March. Of our individual clients, roughly 250 identify as homebound. You can help keep our Pet Food Bank shelves stocked when you make an online donation today or purchase items from our Amazon Wish List. Your gift will provide for those who need it most.
Local businesses are helping too. Ridwell, a Seattle-based company, recently held a special collection of pet food and supplies for Seattle Humane. They collected 600 pounds of dry food and an estimated 2,500 pounds of wet food! Watch the video here. We’re Here for the Animals — and You Getting through a crisis like this — helping both animals and pet families in need — takes commitment and a compassionate community. That's why we are so very grateful for your support and generosity during this trying time. Stay well. Stay safe. We will weather this storm together.
With gratitude,
Paula Littlewood
Interim CEO |
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