1. What will I be doing as an in-shelter volunteer at NAHS?

Dog Caretaker—Assist the Animal Care staff in providing the best care possible through kennel upkeep (filling water bowls, cleaning kennels as needed, doing laundry, and reporting valuable medical and behavioral observations to the volunteer coordinator and volunteer leads.) This is an important first step before moving onto other volunteer roles such as dog walking. 

Cat Caretaker—Assist the Animal Care staff in providing the best care possible through condo/room upkeep (filling water bowls, cleaning litter boxes and condos/rooms as needed, doing laundry, and reporting valuable medical and behavioral observations to the volunteer coordinator and volunteer leads.), followed by quality time with the cats to help reduce stress by playing, petting, and rewarding them with treats, which can all help make them happy and more adoptable. 

Morning Cleaner (Cat & Dog) - Assist the Animal Care staff in providing the best care possible by providing healthy living spaces through daily cleaning and sanitizing cat condos/rooms or kennels while the animals await their forever homes.  

Dog Walker—Exercise and provide companionship for our dogs by walking them outside (rain and snow days included). Walks provide the dogs with time outside of their kennels to enjoy fresh air, sunshine, sniffing opportunities, and potty breaks. There are three walking shifts to choose from: morning, afternoon, and evening. Please note that you must start as a dog caretaker first.

Greeter—Answering basic questions from public walk-ins regarding donating, fostering, adopting, volunteering, and the shelter in general, asking visitors to sign-in at the front desk, showing interested adopters how to view available animals, answer basic questions over-the-phone, and direct more urgent concerns to staff as needed.​

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2. Why do I need to pay a $25 program fee?
The fee covers the cost of your volunteer t-shirt and name badge, which you will receive at your mentoring shift. Your t-shirt AND name badge must be worn on all volunteer shifts. ​

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3. How long is a shift?
The average caretaker and walking shifts are one hour long and start on the hour (so, 1:00 rather than 1:30).  Morning cleaning shifts are approximately two-and-a-half hours long (8:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.)
 

4. What are the hours?

Caretaker shifts are between 1:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. during the week and between 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. on weekends.  

Morning kennel/condo cleaning occurs daily from 8:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. 

Dog walking has 3 walking shifts to choose from: mornings 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. / afternoons 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. / evenings 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. 
 

5. Can I volunteer for longer than one hour or more than once a week?
Absolutely! If there is an opening in the schedule, you are welcome to sign up and come on in!
 

6. How often do I need to volunteer?
We ask that you volunteer at least three times every month for at least one year.  Ideally, we would like you to commit to a set weekly schedule, for example, every Tuesday from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
 

7. What if my schedule changes all the time?
Not a problem! While you have the ability to set your own schedule, we prefer that you have a set schedule for planning purposes. 
 

8. Can I work with both cats and dogs?
Absolutely! But we will ask that you get started on just one side. Once you volunteer for a few shifts, you can request to be trained on the other side of the building.

Questions? Please contact our Volunteer Training Coordinator, Rebecca Barry, at volunteer@naperhumane.org or (630) 420-8989 x 1004.