Loyalty

Loyalty - a strong feeling of support or allegiance

A few months ago I was asked to speak to a group of elementary school-aged kids on the topic of "loyalty".  I cringed a little at the request because when I've heard dogs being described as being loyal I'm never quite sure what that means. 

Dogs are a bit fickle in their allegiance, which is as it should be because they are dogs and see the world quite differently than us humans.  While my dogs love me and enjoy my company, I don't see them as being "loyal" to me in the sense that I would ascribe that same characteristic to a human friend. Certainly if my dogs had to choose between walking slowly (from their perspective) by my side on a walk or running off to chase squirrels they'd choose the squirrels.  And unless they've been well trained they wouldn't come back to me until they'd finished their pursuit no matter how loud I called or what kind of treats I happened to have in my pocket. 

On the other hand, if I was in the middle of a conversation with a friend and she took off on me in the middle of a sentence to do something more appealing I'd be very hurt, while when my dogs do the same thing I see it as them behaving like dogs.  

But that request got me to thinking about loyalty and our relationship with dogs, and it struck me that we shouldn't be describing dogs as being loyal to their humans, but should be talking about how we (the species with the bigger brain and opposable thumbs) should be loyal to our dogs (or other pets). 

Without a doubt when we choose to have pets we take on the responsibility for their care and well-being.  This includes such basics as ensuring that our pets have appropriate food, access to water, exercise, veterinary care and humane treatment. 

But I think that being loyal to our pets takes it a step farther. Being loyal means learning their species' communication signals so that we have a better understanding of their emotional states, and what they're trying to tell us. It means looking out for their emotional well-being.  We should be standing up for them by saying "no" when we know they are stressed or frightened and people want to pet or engage with them.  We should be training them in a manner which is fun and not stressful.  Being loyal means learning about and providing an outlet for their natural instincts and behaviors. Being loyal means being an advocate for our pets and speaking for them since they cannot speak for themselves. 

I try very hard to show my loyalty to my dogs by ensuring they have all their needs met and act as their protector for any danger, real or (from their perspective) imagined.  I don't expect loyalty from my dogs, but I'm sure going to give it to them.

Things I learned at Camp

Oh, no.  Michael (name has been changed) is coming back to camp the next two weeks. 

Michael is one of those kids that is disruptive, disrespectful, and needy of attention.  He makes running camp activities more difficult and causes the counselors more work because they have to constantly monitor and address his behavior issues.  And there is always at least one of "those" kids in every camp session. 

I too was dismayed about Michael coming back to camp so many times this summer, but the funny thing is over time the kid has come to grow on me.  He is still a difficult child and everything I described in the second paragraph still holds true.  But he also has shown a side of sensitivity, humor and on occasion kindness. 

The first time I saw him as other than that "difficult kid" was when the campers noticed a spider in our camp room.  The counselor was called upon to take action, and when she started to move toward the spider Michael said, "Please don't kill it!".  And of course she scooped up the spider and released it outside. 

There's something about any child having empathy and concern for other living things, even spiders, that makes you see them as having good character and gives you hope for their futures. 

So although our campers are learning a lot about animals this summer, I'm reminded not to judge a child by their behavior. 

Crafts for Cats

Coming into an animal shelter is very stressful if you're an animal.  Being in an unfamiliar place with different smells, new people constantly interacting with you, loud noises and being confined are all things that make it difficult for a shelter animal to feel comfortable and secure.

HAWS does everything we can to try and make animals feel more relaxed.  We have volunteers take them out of cages for snuggle time and exercise, we ensure that all animals have toys, and we try to make sure that they have a comfortable place to sleep.

Frequently I get calls from kids groups wanting to make items that HAWS can use for our animals.  We have a whole list of projects ranging from super easy to requiring a lot of time and skill.  But one of our most appreciated crafts are no-sew blankets which are fantastic for our feline guests to cuddle in.

HAWS Critter Club Members and the blankets they made.

 No-sew blankets are made from fleece, which means the fabric can be cut and won't fray.  Additonally fleece is very soft and comfortable.  By cutting strips on the edges of two pieces of of fleece laid back to back, and then tying those strips together, you can create a double thickness blanket with fringes around the edges.

HAWS loves these blankets because they are a great size to fit into our cat cages, and because they are easy to launder.  The cats love these blankets because they are soft and comfortable.

Our Critter Club members just made some blankets for our cats.  As we start heading into our busy season for feline intake those blankets will get a lot of use!

The Zen of Turtle

One of the least difficult programs I do is my weekly Friday visit to Saratoga STEM Academy during Connect - the hour in the middle of the day where the middle school students eat during the first half, and find something to do the second half.  For the animal lovers the visit from HAWS is one of their favorite things, and I get steady stream of kids stopping by to find out what the animal of the week is.

It's an easy program because I really don't have to do anything other than supervise the kids with the animals, answer questions they have about HAWS and the animal I brought, and listen to them talk about their own animals.  While there isn't a specific lesson being given my hope is that the exposure and opportunity to listen and be listened to will have a positive influence on them.

Typically the hour is very noisy and very chaotic.  Students are coming and going, talking to each other loudly, yelling out the door to a friend who is passing by, and off in a corner carrying on conversations having nothing to do with me or the animal.

A few Fridays ago I brought Hulk, our Red-earred slider that is currently residing at HAWS and looking for a home.  As turtles go Hulk is a bit on the shy side.  He doesn't like loud noises and, while tolerant of handling, takes a while to come out of his shell -- literally.

As beautiful of a shell as Hulk has, the kids really wanted to see the rest of him.  And when I explained that he didn't like a noisy environment they all shushed each other, formed a ring around Hulk and waited.  It was a long wait.  Kids still were coming and going, but as they came in they were instructed by their fellow students to keep quiet.  And as they were going they carefully tip toed out of the room. 

I thought for sure the kids would get sick of the wait after a few minutes and go back to being their typical rowdy lunch-time selves.  But they really surprised me in that they kept very quiet for over 10 minutes, and as Hulk very slowly cautiously moved his head out they whispered in excitement that he was doing so.  And after a few minutes when he moved his legs out they maintained their silence respectfully.

Animals have a wonderful effect on people - even turtles on middle schoolers.

5 Freedoms

I'm known about the 5 Freedoms for quite some time now, and we've even incorporated some 5 Freedom activities into our summer camp program.  Lately, however, I've become a bit obsessed with finding ways to incorporate the 5 Freedoms into many of HAWS education programs on a regular basis.

The 5 Freedoms were developed by the United Kingdom Farm Animal Welfare Council as a way to keep livestock in a humane manner.  The 5 Freedoms have since been adopted by many organizations and professionals that care for animals, including animal shelters/humane societies.

The 5 Freedoms are as follows:

1. Freedom from hunger or thirst by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigor
2. Freedom from discomfort by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area
3. Freedom from pain, injury or disease by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment
4. Freedom to express (most) normal behavior by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and company of the animal's own kind
5. Freedom from fear and distress by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering

What I love about the 5 Freedoms is that they so clearly define the majority of what we are trying to do in our education programs.  These are definitions that show what a responsible pet owner provides to the pets in his or her care, and also helps facilitate empathy towards animals.  It shows that we can change an animal's emotional health just by making an effort to provide the 5 Freedoms.

What I also love about the 5 Freedoms is that in order to meet the criteria of all five a person needs to know what the needs of a specific species are, and requires that a pet owner do some research so that they can provide them.

As I go through the school year working with the kids in our clubs, after-school programs and other programs I'll be looking at ways to introduce the students I work with to the 5 Freedoms.  Hopefully it will make them think about how they can make life better for their own pets.  

Gone to the Dogs

Camp Gone to the Dogs is the most popular summer camp held at HAWS each year.  The camp is geared towards kids ages 10-14 years of age and limited to 15 campers.  Campers are placed in groups of three, and each group gets a shelter dog to work with and care for the week.  This summer the campers got to take care of puppies! And caring for puppies, while a lot of fun, brings with it special challenges and responsibilities other than frequent clean-up.

Puppies under 3 months of age benefit greatly from socialization to people, other animals and new things in their environment as long as it isn't overwhelming or scary, and they are allowed a choice as to whether they want to engage with whatever it is they are being exposed to. 

Our campers therefore had a great opportunity to help our adoptable puppies with socialization.  The fact that they spent all week with kids over 10 years who were playing, feeding and walking them allowed them to be socialized to older kids.  But our campers went beyond that!

One of the things we did was have "Crazy Dress Up Day".  Dogs can sometimes become very
frightened of people wearing clothing or costumes outside of what they've experienced.  We told the kids to come with winter clothing (summer puppies sometimes freak out when they are adolescents and people start wearing heavy jackets, scarves and hats), different hats, sunglasses, Halloween costumes, and anything else they could think of.  The kids put on their crazy clothing and spent time playing with and giving treats to the puppies. 

Another thing we did was a few days of environmental socialization.  We placed as many different types of things on the floor as we could think of; exercise pens laid flat, a tire, crinkly plastic - anything the puppies could safely explore walking on, over and into the objects.  The campers were instructed not to force the puppies to do anything.  An important part of socialization is allowing the puppy to make a choice and encourage him to be brave without pressuring him to do something he isn't comfortable with.  And of course lots of cookies were given for being brave and trying new things. 

HAWS camp is finished for the summer; in a few days the kids will start school, and the puppies have already gone to their new homes.  But we hope the kids who attended our Camp Gone to the Dogs learned something about how to properly socialize puppies.  And we know that the efforts they made  during camp have created a lifetime of benefits for the puppies they worked with. 

Campers Helping Cats

Camp season is in full swing at HAWS.  Each year I look for new things to do with the campers.  Many of the kids are repeat campers from previous years, and we have quite a few that attend multiple sessions.  New activities are important so that these children have opportunities to experience and learn something new. 

Over the years we've seen that some of the cats in our adoption ward are stressed or even afraid of the environment while in their cages.  In an effort to help these cats our staff and volunteers will frequently drape blankets over a shelf to provide a tent where these kitties can hide. 

And now that we have our shelter cat Toby I noticed that he adores sleeping in boxes, and I've learned that this is common with cats in general. 

One of the Five Freedoms of providing for humane treatment of an animal is the freedom to express normal behavior.  Cats love to hide in general, and stressed cats need to hide to feel better.  Giving a cat a choice about whether he will hide our come out will make a cat secure, and many times stressed cats will take a break in their hiding spot and then make a choice to come out once they feel better. 

Given this information I decided that making hide boxes for the cats would be a good camp activity.  Boxes are pre-cut and handed out to the campers to decorate.  They're given magazines, construction paper, and drawing material and told to get creative.

The kids love this activity and we found that they needed more time than originally anticipated to finish up.  The boxes are adorable -- the campers really outdo themselves. And best of all it seems that the HAWS cats are loving the boxes too - many times we'll see them snoozing in their cozy boxes. 

Kitten Season

We're coming up on what is commonly known as "kitten season".  That time of year when kittens start streaming in from people who have found them under their porches, on their farms, or in an old shed.  They come in for the most part without a mother, some too young to eat on their own, and others a bit older and showing signs of becoming feral. 

These kittens typically end up on a foster home.  The very young ones will be fed by bottle and pottied by hand.  The older ones will be handled, played with and hopefully learn that living with humans is not such a bad thing after all.  Many times they come out of their shell and become more social. 

When I first started working at HAWS 12 years ago kitten season came rushing in with baskets, boxes and carriers of kittens coming through the doors starting in March and running right through until the end of October -- sometimes even later.  Then most of our cat adoption ward was filled with cages upon cages of 8 week old kittens.  And even though the little ones were adopted quickly, there was a never ending stream to take their place. 

We've noticed a huge change in the last few years.  Kitten season has started with a trickle, and doesn't really get going until the middle of June.  The students in my education programs during the school year repeatedly ask to see kittens, and it's rare that I have any to show them in the spring.  And while our cat adoption ward has many cages of kittens at the height of kitten season, it's not nearly to the level that it was years ago. 

I give credit to HAWS for this transformation.  Our spay and neuter clinic offers free spay/neuter to farms with barn cats, and to residents taking care of community cats; the cats that have no owners. We've also created alliances with other organizations to take cats if we are over-full and they are able. 

HAWS has a goal to create a no-kill community.  Right now we fulfilling that definition with dogs and our small animals.  And we are ever so much closer to that goal with the cats that we take in; we get closer every year.   Spay and neuter to reduce the population works, and HAWS is proof of that. 

Hee Haw!

Where do donkeys go when they've been neglected, mistreated, or no longer wanted?  Luckily there are non-profit rescue organizations that are able to take these animals in and care for them either for life, or until they've been adopted into their own homes. 

Holyland Donkey Haven in Mt. Calvery, WI is one such place, and this semester's group of Critter Club members was lucky enough to be able to visit there last Sunday on our regular semester field trip. 

Donkey Haven founder, Angela Langoski could not have been more welcoming to our group as she explained about how she started rescuing donkeys and created a sanctuary.  

We heard personal stories about some of the donkeys -- both sad stories about their past, and happy stories about how they went to their loving new homes.  

Much like HAWS, Donkey Haven is a private non-profit that relies on donations and volunteers to care for the animals and ensure that they will always have a safe place to live. 

Critter Club members all fell in love with these wonderful animals and were astounded at how affectionate, gentle and playful they could be.  We all laughed to see them rolling around on their backs in the dirt, and moved out of the way when they got a bit frisky.  

There were a lot of requests to take one home, but unfortunately getting one on the school bus would have been a logistical problem.  We reluctantly left the donkeys behind with promises to visit again.   

It's that time of year!

Things are warming up, we're getting rain instead of snow, buds are forming on trees and grass is getting greener.  In addition to life becoming more enjoyable to us humans, it's also the time of year that HAWS sees a huge increase in the number of wildlife being brought into our shelter.

These animals typically are injured, sick or thought to be orphaned, and will be transferred to a wildlife rehabilitation center until they can be released back into the wild where they belong. I use the term "thought to be orphaned" because many times baby animals are removed when they should not have been.

Baby rabbits and fawns in particular are misunderstood.  A concerned citizen sees them without an adult and assumes that they've been abandoned by their parents.  What many people don't realize is that these prey species absent themselves from their babies deliberately.  Hanging around where your baby is located is a good way to tell a predator where to find an easy meal.  The mother rabbit and deer come back  to feed their babies, and then leave again. 

If you are convinced that a nest of rabbits has been abandoned you can lightly cover them with grass and check on them the next morning.  If the grass has been removed the mother rabbit has been by for a feeding.

A fawn will only require assistance if it has been crying for more than 3 hours, or if it is obviously injured.  Observe from a distance - getting too close means that you're spreading your scent in the area of the baby deer and your scent may attract predators.

If you want to help a wild animal you should first find out if it actually  needs help and what kind of help it needs.  A great resource is the Wildlife In Need Center in Dousman.  They have a great FAQ section on their website, or you can call during their clinic hours with questions.

Making Do with What You Have

When I was growing up I wasn't allowed to have a dog, though I dreamed about it and was one of those kids that got excited every time I saw a dog.  We had fish, turtles, at one time I had a garter snake, and then when I was in Junior High I was allowed to have a hamster.  I really wanted a "real pet" that I could do something with.  Something more than just holding it and (in the case of the hamster) petting it.

Now I have dogs and we do a lot together.  And because I really enjoy training dogs and have a vast network of friends (both real life and cyber) who are also training geeks I have access to more training information than I know what to do with. Additionally, when I was growing up we didn't have that wonderful thing called the internet -- which has allowed a great exchange of information and videos.

Some of the most amazing videos I've seen of trained animals haven't been with dogs, but with small pocket type animals.  The same animals that many kids are resigned to having in lieu of having a "real" pet like a cat or a dog. Who know that hamsters, guinea pigs and rats could learn so much and be so much fun?

If you have one of these types of pets watch the videos I've posted below and be inspired.  And if you don't, watch anyways and be in awe.




 

Choice equals Respect and Safety

I wrote the following post originally for a HAWS Tattle Tales article.  I would argue that teaching children animal safety should absolutely include this concept. Allowing pets to make choices is a topic I'd like to explore in the future, since I believe that this is the foundation for respect and fundamental to humane education. 

A study with nursing home residents showed that those individuals who were encouraged to make personal choices for themselves were happier and healthier than residents who had all decisions made by staff.  (Langer & Rodin, 1976). 

Lack of control in the workplace is considered to be a huge stressor for an employee.  A study showed that employees in high stress jobs with a lack of control were more stressed than employees in high stress jobs and more control.  (Karasek, 1979) 

Allowing an individual at least some autonomy gives them control over their lives, helps develop confidence, reduces stress, promotes a happy life, and can be an important part of developing a relationship. 

Everything I’ve written so far is in reference to human beings, but is equally applicable to animals.  Indeed zoos make every opportunity to allow their animals to have as many choices as possible.  Just because an animal is on display doesn’t mean you’ll get to see him if he’s decided he wants to hide from you.  A large part of enrichment for zoo animals incorporates the opportunity to make choices and have some control over their environment.      

I would argue that we also need to provide our pets with choices.  So much of our pets lives are dictated by us; we tell them where to eliminate, where they should sleep, control when they eat, dictate what they can and cannot play with, and decide when we are going to provide them with exercise.  While we can’t give our pets full autonomy, we can try and give them the ability to make choices as often as possible.   

Humane Education is all about respecting and displaying compassion for all living things.  What better way to instill these concepts than to teach children about allowing animals to have choices.   Just because you want to pet the kitty doesn’t mean that the kitty wants you to pet her.  Allowing a cat to leave the room and hide is a great way to show respect and acknowledge her rights as an individual to decline an interaction that makes only one of the two of you happy.  

Giving our pets choices about whether they want to be touched or approached by us or others not only gives them autonomy and respect, but is also a safety issue.  Animals that are stressed, anxious or frightened are more likely to feel the need to defend themselves; we know that most bites are caused by animals who are frightened.  

Our jobs as pet owners are not only to care for them, but to protect them and help them thrive in our world.   And what better way is there than finding ways to give our pets some choices about their lives. 

Amazing kids!

At the beginning of the school year I received an email from Randall STEM Academy saying,

"Our 2nd/3rd graders are doing a unit on Community. Their final project will be for them to work in small groups and carry out a service project to help the Waukesha community and be good citizens. 

We are looking for representatives from Waukesha area service groups to come in and explain what the group does to help the community and how kids can be involved (either now or in the future)." 

Of course I went and talked to the kids and had a really fun time talking about HAWS and what we do here.

A few weeks ago I received another email from the teacher saying they were holding a service expo and that the students would like to show the representatives from the non-profits what they had done.  I attended that expo on Wednesday.

As I walked into the media center I saw that groups of kids were surrounding tables that were labeled with the name of the non-profit that the group had chosen to help.  I walked past several tables looking in the sign that said HAWS, and started to wonder if maybe none of the groups had chosen us for their project.

As I came around one of the tables I looked up at a doorway leading into another room and saw tabled the the door frame "HAWS".  We didn't just get a table, we had a whole room because about 8 groups of kids had chosen us!   I was immediately touched and overwhelmed by the magnitude of the desire that so many 2nd and 3rd graders had to want to help the animals of Waukesha County.

I approached one of the groups and introduced myself and asked to see their project.  They were thrilled to see me, excited to show me the video they had created to promote their project, and proudly presented me with a plastic baggie, telling me that it held $43.00.

As I spoke to the next group I started getting tugs on my arms with children from other parts of the room asking me to come see their project.  I assured all the students that I was planning on visiting every table.  Every group of kids was proud of the video or slide show they'd created, and even more proud of the results, since every group had collected items from HAWS wishlist.

I hear sometimes that kids today are being raised to be selfish and materialistic.  I think the Randall STEM 2nd and 3rd graders prove that just isn't true. 

Below is a video I created for the students.  Our staff and volunteers truly appreciate their hard work!

Training Toby

Toby is HAWS official shelter cat.  We decided to keep him last spring when it became apparent that he had a chronic upper respiratory condition and felt that he would be difficult to place because of it.  Besides, we kind of liked having Toby around.  He's very friendly, entertaining and our staff and volunteers feel a great deal of affection for him.

From Toby's point of view being HAWS shelter cat is a good deal.  He gets to watch the adoptable rodents, get attention from dozens of people each day, has fun running around the building, and finds all sorts of ways to get himself into trouble.  Trouble usually means finding things to eat, which now that he's a whopping 17 pounds means that he's officially on a strict diet.  On the plus side all the staff has been instructed to play with him more frequently so that he gets more exercise.  The number of Toby designated laser pointers and fishing pole toys scattered around the building is amazing!

When HAWS officially decided to keep him I had it at the back of my mind that he would also make an excellent education cat.  With his outgoing personality he will be great at visiting schools and other facilities.  I knew, however, that there would be some skills that Toby would need in order for this to be as stress free as possible.

The skills I had in mind were to go in a crate on cue, come when called, and walk on a harness. And that meant I'd need to train him to do these things.  I'm a dog trainer, and haven't ever trained a cat, but I was up for the challenge.

Our training program started last month, and I ended up deciding against the harness training because I'm not sure it will be necessary.  He has such a great recall and his visits will all be inside.  

A few things I've learned about training cats.

1) Keep the sessions short.   Initially I had Toby's attention for about 30 seconds.  Now we can do sessions as long as 3 minutes, but past that and he'd just plain done.

2) Find what they love, and use that as a reinforcer.  Toby loves food and that's what I was originally going to use for all his behaviors.  But I discovered that while tuna worked great for teaching him to go into his crate on cue, he wasn't interested in coming for tuna when I called him to come.  For that he would much rather have play time.  So I carry around a laser pointer so that I can reinforce him when he comes when I call him.  (Other staff have started doing the same that he'll come no matter who calls him.)

3) They will surprise you.  I had really thought it would be hard to get Toby to go into a crate on cue, but I had him willingly going in after just 2 training sessions.  The hard part was getting him to come out of it once he's made himself comfortable.

Here's a video of today's training session.

 
First Section:  I called Toby to come to me, and his reward is getting the chase the laser light for a few seconds.

Second section:  Not only am I asking him to go in the crate, but I've conditioned him to not be concerned when the door closes, and we're just starting to work on my picking the crate up.  This will be important if he's going to enjoy going to schools because I'll be carrying him to and from the car.

Third Section:  I'm working on teaching him to weave through my legs.  I figure people will be amazed if Toby knows a few tricks, and it will be a great way to demonstrate that any animal can be trained!

Victims of the Backyard Chicken Movement

Increasingly we're becoming more educated about our impact on the environment, and more concerned about what our families are eating.  Urban farming is becoming more popular as people want to know where their food comes from, and ensure that the food they eat doesn't leave a carbon footprint. 

Part of the urban farming movement is getting backyard chickens, and some cities have passed ordinances allowing limited numbers of chickens to be raised in a person's backyard.  What could be better than knowing that the eggs you're eating came from the hens you're raising and not transported in a way that causes carbon emissions? 

Additionally many people like the idea that their backyard chickens live a pampered life and aren't subjected to the crowded, filthy and inhumane environment of chickens in a factory farm that produce the eggs we purchase in store. 

One of the problems with backyard chickens is that most municipalities that allow it have a prohibition against roosters since they are very noisy.  Roosters don't just crow at the crack of dawn, they start their crowing at the crack of dawn and continue throughout the day.  That type of noise is unwelcome in an urban or suburban environment.  The hatcherys that sell chicks can only give a 90% guarantee that the chicks they are selling will be hens, and not roosters.  This means that a person ordering several chicks runs a very real risk of one of them growing up to be a rooster, and will face a difficult decision as to what to do with him when that happens. 

Increasingly HAWS has become a solution for some suburban backyard chicken fanciers in Waukesha County.  A few weeks ago we had a woman surrender her rooster when it became old enough it was apparent it was a male.  Last week 5 roosters were abandoned in a box in Menomonee Falls.  A few days ago a man brought in another rooster that someone had dumped at his farm.

Unfortunately some people who want to do a good thing by humanely raising chickens and knowing where their eggs come from are behaving in an irresponsible manner as a consequence of their hobby.   If someone wants to get chickens they should do their research and know what they are getting themselves into beforehand.  If they don't want to risk getting a rooster then older chickens should be purchased.  And if they get chicks they should have a clear plan as to what will happen if one or more turns out to be a rooster, and be responsible enough not to give it to an animal shelter. 

Critter Club meets Camp

HAWS Kids 'N Critters Summer Camp ended last week after a 10 week run.  One of the things that made it especially wonderful was that we had three dedicated volunteers from our school year Critter Club helping out our camp staff.  While Camden, Melissa and Mia didn't come every day, these teens probably came about half the time -- which is incredible considering how kids generally look forward to the freedom that summer vacation can give them!

Our volunteers helped clean up after campers, ran games with the kids, got supplies and animals for the counselors, and helped with supervision.  They were enthusiastic and went above and beyond our expectations!

At the end of camp we gave them each thank you cards signed by each of the staff along with a gift card for $10 to Culvers.  I wanted them to know how much we truly appreciated their hard work, dedication and sacrifice of part of their summer, and hoped the cards made them feel appreciated.

I was truly touched at their reactions.  Mia became teary eyed, Melissa objected to the gift card because she kept saying that she was volunteering as a camp assistant because she enjoyed it, not because she expected to get anything, and Camden also said that he enjoyed coming and helping out at HAWS.  All three were very surprised and touched by their thank yous, and that made it worth it. 

My hope is that our gratitude made an impression on them and they understand how valued they are. 

Guest Blogger from "Science with the Animals"

Hi, my name is Madi Edens and I’ve been a part of different HAWS Education programs for about seven years and have recently started being a camp volunteer.  This week I’m in a fairly new camp called “Science with the Animals.” This camp is like a regular Kids ‘N Critters Camp but has more scientific activities. Some of these activities include looking at mites/parasites under microscopes, watching a surgery performed by HAWS veterinarians, learning about animal anatomy, and conducting our own experiments after  learning about the scientific method. We have to come up with a experiment ourselves and decide how we’re going to conduct it.

Khris gave us a PowerPoint on the first day of camp that showcased the scientific method. Following this PowerPoint were videos of different experiments researchers have done with dogs, birds and chimpanzees. One of the studies that interested me was one that focused on how dogs pay attention to us and the signals we give them. In this study, people would put dogs in a sit/stay a couple feet away from a chair and two cups. The person would then sit on the chair, give the dog a release word and point to one of the cups. They found that dogs almost always go to the cup that was pointed at. This is something that even chimps don’t do even though they are thought to think more like humans than any other animal. 

As I mentioned earlier this camp is newer as it was for the first time last summer and I’ll admit my group didn’t do so well with our experiment then. This year however, we knew what we were doing and conducted an interesting experiment. The experience we did was based off of the one in the video we saw. We decided to see whether cats or dogs respond better to pointing. Our hypothesis was that dogs would respond better. We tried to eliminate variables by using the same treats and cups for both the dogs and the cats, and making sure that we did say anything to the animal or move our hands around while pointing. 

What we found at the end of our research proved our hypothesis. There was a 100% success rate with the dogs and only a 62.5% success rate with the cats. We found it interesting that cats had such a lower success rate. While dogs were thought to be domesticated first, cats have still been around humans for a LONG time. I feel as that the independent nature of cats factors into why they didn’t respond as well to pointing as the dogs did. Since cats don’t rely on us as much as dogs they may not be as in tune to what we are doing or showing them.

Activities like this are one of the many reasons I love coming to camp. Not only do we get to come up with and perform our own experiment, we get to think about why we see the results we do and make conclusions based on these results. This was just one small activity in science camp but it made us think outside the box and figure out why the results ended up how they did. Who knows, maybe years down the road a camper will think back to their experiment and decide to look further into it?

Birthdays! (that is plural!)

HAWS recently celebrated our 50th birthday.  50 years ago a group of kind hearted Waukesha County Residents decided that something needed to be done for the stray and unwanted animals in the community, and created an animal shelter.

Eva Metrusias has been a Kids 'N Critters Camp attendee for the last several years.  This week is her second session attending our Camp Gone to the Dogs.  We know what a wonderful kid she is, and always enjoy seeing her at camp.

However today Eva gave proof that younger generations are just as kind hearted as those who started HAWS half a century ago.  She came to camp with her mother and brother carrying a lot of donations for HAWS.  When I asked her about how she was able to collect so much for us, Eva told me that her birthday was earlier this week and she asked for donations to HAWS in lieu of presents.

So Happy 12th Birthday Eva!  And thank you so much for sharing your birthday with HAWS!

Getting Caught Up

It's been a busy month in the education department at HAWS.  This is one of our busiest times of the year.  Scout troops call in droves to set up tours, school have us come out for multiple sessions of their High Interest Days, and additionally we still do the regularly scheduled programs and start planning for our summer camp.

Just before Easter HAWS hosted students from Waukesha South High School for a morning of learning about HAWS.  The Veterinary Science Initiative (VSI) program provides science based curriculum for high school teachers to use and ends with a shelter visit.  It's a great way to get humane education into the high schools while at the same time adhering to instruction standards. 

The students learned about what our staff do on intake -- check for parasites, and evaluate over all health.  They had an opportunity to observe surgery, learning about canine body language and get a feel for what a typical day in a shelter is like. 

After Easter we held our Spring Break Camp for 14 students from Whittier Elementary School.  The kids were able to learn about different aspects of animal welfare, and participate in a stolen dog CSI activity.  Luckily the dog was found safe and sound due to the sleuthing abilities of the students to match up fingerprints and hair samples. 

What's next?  Getting our Critter Club to put together activities for our annual Pet Walk on May 2 being held at Sussex Village Park.  Hope to see you there!

Elephants Leaving the Big Top

One of the concepts I try to educate students about is the difference between tame and domesticated animals.

A tame animal is one that is relatively tolerant of humans.  A wild animal can be tame if it has a lot of positive exposure to humans, although it is still a wild animal with all of it's instincts and behaviors intact.  Unfortunately there are many examples of tame animals turning on their handlers/owners -- from Roy Horn (Siegfried & Roy) being attacked by his tiger during a performance to the woman who was attacked by a friend's pet chimpanzee and had her face and hands ripped off.

A domesticated animal is different than a tame animal.  Domestication is a process whereby humans genetically change an organism to meet their needs.  When an animal is domesticated it loses many of it's natural behaviors and instincts, and tends to be able to be tamed much easier when socialized from a young age.

For years I have opposed traditional circuses that use tamed, wild animals to entertain audiences through trained performances.  A large part of my opposition is due to the fact it has been documented that many of these animals are trained using highly aversive and abusive methods.  These methods are unnecessary -- through my own education I know that it's possible to train any animal through the use of positive methods.

A bigger concern is that circus animals cannot have the proper environment and enrichment to thrive and engage in their natural behaviors.  When traveling from location to location animals are transported on a train.  In between performances on the road elephants are chained by shackles on their feet.  Wild cats are kept in barred cages much smaller than even the habitats that good zoos use to house their big cats -- which is smaller than what their habitat would in the wild.

 
Humans share the earth with many other species.  As the dominant species we have a responsibility to care for the earth and make choices that not only benefit us, but that treat animals in a humane manner.  Using animals solely for the purpose of entertainment when it doesn't benefit the individual animal nor the rest of their species is, in my opinion, immoral.    Additionally it sends the wrong message to children - that wild animals should be something to be entertained by, and not respected. 

Recently Ringling Bros. recently announced that they are eliminating their elephant acts, and will phase them out by the year 2018.    Although too long in coming, this is a bit of welcome news.  Now Ringling just needs to commit to eliminate all of their wild animal acts.