There’s an undeniable emotional drain on the volunteers who take in lost and surrendered pets at the Young-Williams Animal Center in Knoxville, Tennessee.
We’re told that the hardest intakes are dogs. After the owner leaves, you can feel the dog’s confusion. They look at the door and then they glance up at you with sad eyes that ask, “When are they coming back?”
It’s hard to keep volunteers, but the ones who stay receive their fair share of happy, reaffirming moments. Not to mention the satisfying relief these volunteers feel when a pet is adopted into a “forever home.” In fact, as our team dropped off pet supplies and donations, one dog walker didn’t even stop to see what all the fuss was about.
Turns out, she’s the stopgap until the shelter finds more volunteers. So it’s not surprising that we found her outside, walking an energetic pit bull in the rain. We gave her some cash. Then we thanked her for stretching her time, money and energy to care for these soon to be found pets.
