What have the staff of the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria (AWLA) been doing over the past month?
Along with rolling out a Virtual Adoption process; providing nearly 4,000 pounds of pet food and supplies via their Pet Pantry; caring for animals both in the shelter and through the AWLA’s foster program; and helping Alexandrians with questions about wildlife and animals in the community, every member of the AWLA team earned their Fear Free® Certification.
“The AWLA has always adhered to best practices to keep our animals safe and comfortable,” said AWLA Executive Director Stella Hanly, “but as new methods are developed, we want to continue to expand our efforts to provide the best care that we can.”
The Fear Free program was developed by Dr. Marty Becker and provides guidance on how to keep animals not only healthy in a shelter environment but also comfortable and unafraid.
“Our staff were already observing a lot of these practices before they went through the Fear Free certification process,” said Director of Operations Katie DeMent, “but this training helped to formalize much of what they were doing, and it helps us all work together better to make the animals in our custody feel safe.”
Online trainings in the program highlight ways to conduct medical exams, practice behavior modification and even ways to bring animals into the shelter that help them feel most comfortable.
Director of Community Programs Joanna Fortin was one of the first staff members to earn her certification. “We strive to take the best care of all the animals who come to us, but we know the shelter environment is no substitute for a home,” she said. “Still, after completing this training, I think we all feel more empowered to do even more for these animals.”
To ensure that all staff are operating with the same level of training going forward, Fear Free certification will become part of the training for all new staff. Members of the AWLA team also undergo trainings in animal body language, behavior and modification, exotic animals, wildlife response and more as part of their roles at the Vola Lawson Animal Shelter.
