The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or SPCA, is a non-profit “open door” animal rescue shelter, where neglected animals are accepted, taken care of and adopted. Unlike most private shelters, the SPCA believes in giving all animals a chance, helping and rehoming 200 animals a month through its Hope Program. Currently, Peninsula Humane Society and local SPCA have 1,400 volunteers of all ages, including many Aragon students.
Despite the large number of accepted volunteers, getting the job doesn’t come easy. Volunteers need to go through specific training to work with different animals. Junior Jasmin Hernandez, who has been helping out at the SPCA for a year and a half, remembers the process she went through to become a volunteer.
“I had to go through two meetings: one was informational and the other was in general … where you walk through and they [teach] you what to do with the animals,” she said. “It took me five months to actually be with the dogs.”
Though it was a long wait, Hernandez thinks it was worth the time.
“It made the experience at the end much more valuable,” Hernandez said. ”It felt like it was something you worked for a long time and the reward was being with the dogs I love.”
The volunteering job at the SPCA is mainly cleaning and TLC, or Tender Loving Care. High school volunteers typically take care of domestic animals, like dogs and cats.
“I usually go to the laundry room because there is a lot to do there, and then I play with [the dogs],” Hernandez said.“You are supposed to take 30 minutes per dog and then when you finish there you just go back to laundry.”
Sophomore Samantha Lee, who also works with dogs, describes similar responsibilities.
“I walk around making sure all the dogs have clean beds and there is no waste,” Lee said. “I normally go in rooms with dogs I feel more comfortable with.”
Volunteering at the SPCA is also enjoyable for students in many ways. For Hernandez, it’s an opportunity to have interactions with dogs, her favorite animal.
“I personally really want to have a dog,” Hernandez said. “But I can’t, so [volunteering] is my way of having one … Because I spend quality time with each dog I visit, I connect to each one in some way and I just imagine or pretend that’s my dog. It gives me a sneak peek of how it would feel like if I have a dog when I’m older and how much happiness they can bring.”
Lee feels happy knowing that she is making a difference in the animals’ lives.
“The most rewarding part for me,” Lee said, “is knowing that the [tender loving care] we are doing for these dogs helps them in the future.”
Compared to many other volunteer opportunities for high schoolers, working at the SPCA is different and allows students to develop a fulfilling and personal connection with the animals. Being with animals, petting them and taking care of them, promotes oxytocin — known as the “cuddle hormone” — in the brain, and students feel a bond between themselves and the animal they take care of.
Junior Hannah Pearlman volunteered at the SPCA before she adopted her dog from the shelter last September. She describes the volunteering experience as more personal.
“ I volunteered at the Second Harvest Food Bank a couple of times,” Pearlman said. “[When you’re] working one-on-one rather than just sorting cans … you get to form bonds with other animals, which is amazing.”
In addition to developing relationships with the animals, working with them also allows students to improve useful skills like patience and empathy. From enduring the long initiation process to working with more sensitive animals from complicated backgrounds, these skills are common tenets held by the SPCA and its volunteers and are applicable to daily life. Hernandez learned first-hand the virtue of patience.
“I [try] not rush into things,” she said. “It’s helpful because some people want to [rush] but don’t end up getting the results they expect. [Like] in sports, you will not be automatically good at something so slowly each day you can try adding something new to improve how you play and eventually you will get there.”
Lee has learned to apply strategies from volunteering to take care of her own dog at home.
“I have my own dog and I know he came from a rough past,” she said. “Being patient with him and the dogs at the SPCA is important.”
The SPCA provides a unique volunteer opportunity for students who love animals or are looking to step out of their comfort zone to gain an invaluable learning experience while earning community service hours. While building close and reliable relationships with animals, students can also learn important skills that can be easily transferred to pets or daily life.
