Cooper

       My first Saturday off! I enjoyed sleeping in until 8AM! I didn't do much this morning until getting ready for my volunteer shift at Dogtown in the afternoon. I went over to the sanctuary at about 12:30 to check in, and then after check-in, I made my way over to Dogtown Headquarters. Amongst other volunteers, I waited in line to find out where I would be assigned for the afternoon. They put me in a section called The Fairway. Here, they basically have young adult dogs. To give you some background, Dogtown has at least 10 different octagon-shaped structures where they house the dogs. These structures have an an inside enclosure as well as an outside run so the dogs have some room to stretch their legs. Within "The Fairway", there's two octagon structures that are named after dogs who passed away. 


        Since it was so hot this afternoon, the caregivers did not want us to take the dogs out for long walks. So for the most part, I did a little bit of cleaning, and socializing with the dogs. Sadly, a lot of the dogs had come from bad situations, so majority of the dogs were very shy and standoffish. I'm glad I could be there for the dogs and spend some time with them... But being around dogs today made me pretty sad. Not only did I feel sorry for the dogs because I can't even imagine what they've been through, but it really made me miss Lola. When I was at The Fairway today, trying to connect with the dogs, I found myself longing to hug and hold my own dog back home. So I'm sad to report that my day in Dogtown wasn't all that great. It made me feel like the next four weeks is going to be an eternity.


       Once I got home from volunteering, I made myself a crappy dinner (noodles out of a bag, woohoo....). Later on, feeling like I really needed to clear my head, I decided to go for a run. I ran all the way down Powell Drive, which is a dead end street. At the end of the street, there is some kind of man-made water source that's surrounded by a fence. I stood there for awhile, listened to my music, took in all of the scenery. I took a moment to ground myself, which I definitely needed after this long week. To give all of you an idea of my scenery...

       After taking it all in and catching my breath, I turned around and ran back home. As I neared home, I saw a big, black, shaggy dog on the side of Powell Drive. He was just sitting there, minding his own business. I started walking towards him. He was across the street so I whistled at him and said "come here boy!". He happily got up, wagged his tail, and ran over to me as if he'd known me his whole life. Once he got over to me, I knelt down to pet him, and he instantly flopped on his side, letting me know that he really wanted a belly rub. Here's proof...

       So as I'm petting this sweet boy, I notice that he doesn't have a collar on. Not knowing what to do, I decided to keep walking and beckon him as I go. He stayed right by my side as if I had him on a leash. As I approached home, I told him to sit and stay as I went inside to get Amberly. He didn't move a muscle. When we came back out, we put a collar and a leash on him, and then we put him into her fenced-in backyard. We managed to find a phone number for Animal Control, and they said they would come out and pick him up. As I waited for Animal Control, he sat right next to me, even on my foot at some point. He laid down next to me, he seemed very comfortable. Every so often, he would look up at me or give me a kiss on the cheek. Needless to say, I was quickly falling in love with this pup! When Animal Control arrived, the officer recognized the dog right away and said, "Cooper, how did you get out boy??". Turns out, Cooper lives right up the street from where I'm staying, where he nonchalantly just left his yard to tag along with me. Although I'm glad he has a home, it still worries me that he doesn't have a collar and that he can escape his yard so easily. (I've noticed that people aren't too bright out here...). I walked Cooper back up the street, put him in his yard, gave him a hug and a kiss, and returned home.

       Once I got home, I couldn't help but think that it was no coincidence that Cooper found me today. I think Cooper knew that I was sad and missing my own dog, and he decided that he would cheer me up. And he definitely did. Cooper reminded me of the beautiful, kind nature of dogs, and their extraordinary ability to make even the worst day better. As he gave me kisses and gave me his paw to "shake", I could tell that he knew exactly what he was doing, and he knew exactly what I needed... I needed the love of a dog.

Week One: Complete!

       I apologize for not blogging on Friday night... It may shock you all to know that I had plans! Michele, a member of the bunny staff, had invited me over to her house for happy hour! So after work, I went home, got changed, and went over to her place. We went for a walk and then we just sat on her porch, talked, and had a few drinks. I'm so glad that I met her... Michele is such a sweetheart and a really cool person. I'm going to miss her next week! I'm probably a little bit too happy to have had Friday night plans... It's been very strange to have no social life whatsoever while in Kanab. 


       Anyway, my last day in bunnies was fun and easy; I cleaned cages and hay boxes. In the morning, the interns were scheduled to attend a presentation on puppy mills. The presentation was given by Dr. Frank McMillian, a veterinarian here at Best Friends. Growing up in Reading, PA, just half an hour away from Amish country... I was already pretty familiar with the prevalence and severity of these horrific businesses, but Dr. Frank has conducted multiple studies in order to study adult breeding dogs that come out of puppy mill situations, as well as, the puppies that come from puppy mills, and I learned so many new things from his research alone. What he found were some very staggering and significant statistics when comparing the behavior/personality of a puppy mill dog vs. a private breeder dog. Unfortunately, I cannot remember the statistical numbers from yesterday, but I do remember that the level of issues that puppy mill dogs have, compared to dogs that are not from puppy mills, is astronomical. Overall, I found his research to be extremely compelling and very vital to the cause of eradicating puppy mills altogether. As an undergrad in the very beginning phases of conducting qualitative research on the human tendencies to anthropomorphize their dogs, I was very intrigued by Dr. Frank's research. Not only because it's fascinating, but he managed to quantify a qualitative study, and basically make it objective. I would love to add a quantifiable, or objective component to my own research one day (as minuscule as it is). Lots to think about in the future!


      This afternoon, I am volunteering in Dogtown! I definitely need to get my "fix". Not that bunnies aren't adorable, but I'm in desperate need of the love and affection that you can only get from a dog! I'm sure I'll have a blast this afternoon! Speaking of adorable bunnies... I'm going to post the last adorable bunny picture today, and to be honest, I think I saved the best for last.

This is Patrick (but everyone tends to call him Patrick Ol' Boy, lol). He is the only lop-eared bunny at the sanctuary right now. He is the most precious little thing you ever saw... He makes your heart melt! I'm happy to report that Patrick is getting adopted next week to a loving home. Yay!

       One week down, four more to go! I will say that this week did not go by quickly, but I'm sure that will change. I miss home, I miss my family, I miss my boyfriend, I miss my friends, I miss Lola. Trying to stay positive and convince myself that these next four weeks will fly by! I can do this.

      Captured this shot on the way home from Michele's last night. So pretty!

Bunny Butt Baths

       You may have read this title and thought... "Ew, what is a bunny butt bath?!". It's not as gross as it sounds, but it's definitely not the most pleasant thing either. I had the privilege of learning how to give a butt bath on a little guy named Levi. Fortunately for everyone reading this, I don't have any pictures of myself performing this task. Anyway, to give a butt bath, you have to learn how to pick up the bunny correctly (one hand underneath the belly, the other hand supporting his bottom), and when you pick him up, you're supposed to flip him onto his back and cradle him in your arm. Once he's on his back and wedged between your side and your arm, it's easy to see his belly, his feet, and his butt. Also, when the bunnies are on their backs, it makes them extremely docile and submissive, so it's easier to handle them in this position. The purpose of butt baths is to clean off any caked-on/matted poop. Butt baths also prevent urine scalding, infections, and loss of fur. The rabbit staff perform butt baths all of the time to ensure that the bunnies are as comfortable and as healthy as possible! Like I've said before, these bunnies are the luckiest bunnies in the world!


       Yet again, I ate at the Village Cafe today, and since it was so warm today (in the high 70s), I decided to eat lunch out on the deck! This was my view as I munched on my awesome salad.

     So cool!!! After lunch, I returned to Rescue Village. Every afternoon, the bunnies get a bunch of fresh leafy greens, whether it's romaine lettuce, cilantro, dandelion weed... You name it, these bunnies get it! And they go crazy for greens! I snapped a couple pictures of them munching away :)

       Once all of the greens are handed out, all you hear is this crunch, crunch, crunch sound, and it is so cute. You can tell how content and happy they are!

       Overall, today was a good day. Can't believe tomorrow is already my last day in bunnies! I've met some really nice, and some really cool people, and learned a lot too! Hopefully the staff is just as nice when I'm in......... PIGS! That's right, all of next week I will be working with potbelly pigs!! I'm not exactly sure what I'll be doing yet, and I'm very eager to find out! I hope it's just as fun as bunnies! We will see...

     On my way home from work, I stopped by the grocery store to pick up a few things. Undoubtedly, I was reminded exactly where I was when I saw this. Good ol' Utah...

Hay Fever

       Wish I had something super cool and exciting to blog about today, but unfortunately, today wasn't much different from yesterday. I worked in the Bunny House in the morning, and moved up to Rescue Village for the afternoon. I think the elevation and the hay are starting to get to me... I've been trying to fight off a headache and a runny nose all day! Grrrr, the week is starting to catch up to me as well... I'm not used to working 9 hour days! Anyway, that's enough of my complaining. On the bright side, I got a chance to hold another adorable bunny today!

This is Crusoe, he's a sweetheart (that pooped all over me) at Rescue Village!

And I forgot to post this picture yesterday.. This is Charlie and me! I can't take how cute his little ears are!

       That's all for now. Sorry about the short post! Hopefully I'll have more interesting events to report on tomorrow!

Rescue Village

       Another day down in bunnies! This morning I was in the Bunny House, and I basically did the same thing as yesterday. Surprisingly, cleaning/sweeping up bunny poop can be pretty therapeutic!! In addition to cleaning bunny runs, I am learning SO much new information about bunnies that I never knew and I find it so fascinating!


       For lunch today, the other interns and I ate lunch at the Village Cafe with one of the founders of Best Friends, Faith Maloney. She was a very kind, sweet woman. She asked each of us why we came to Best Friends and what we plan to do with our future careers. It was very nice to meet her and hear her inputs on each of our career choices. When I told her that I was interested in opening my own nonprofit for animals one day, she said that there was a definite need for executive directors of nonprofits and that I should do whatever I can to gain experience or a background in directing/managing a nonprofit. So it was definitely cool to talk with one of the founders who created this awesome example of how ALL animal shelters should be run.


        After lunch, I was told to go up to Rescue Village. Rescue Village is another place that is designated for bunnies. Rescue Village was created back in 2006 as a result of a horrific hoarding situation. A woman from Reno, Nevada called Best Friends and said she needed someone to take her bunnies because she could no longer care for them. Turns out this woman had over 800 bunnies. The construction of Rescue Village took about a month to be completed, and by the time Best Friends had arrived at this woman's house, the number of bunnies multiplied to over 1,600. Multiple members of the Bunny House staff described how horrendous the situation was... I can't even begin to imagine some of the things they saw. Anyway, Rescue Village is kept totally separate from the Bunny House because of illnesses and diseases. Regardless of where the bunnies are kept, they are the luckiest bunnies in the world. They have it made!


       I managed to snap a couple pictures of the little ones today....

This is Nancy, she's one of the larger bunnies at the Bunny House!

This little fella is Charlie! He's a California Dwarf bunny, and he is one of the bunnies in Rescue Village. He is so sweet... He just cuddles right up into your neck. I sat and hung out with him for about half an hour!

This is another "close-up" picture of my girl, Harley. (She's a full-size California Bunny).

     I'm starting to look up places around Utah that I can travel to on the weekends! I can't wait to start taking some adventures! Of course I'll be taking LOTS of pictures wherever I go :)

First Week: Bunnies

       The normal commute from where I'm staying to the sanctuary is about 15 minutes. There is only one road to the sanctuary, and that's Highway 89. But unfortunately, they've been doing a lot of construction on 89 for the last few months, narrowing the road down to only one lane. They use something called a "pilot car", which takes cars back and forth along this 3-mile stretch of highway. While the one direction of cars is going through, you have to sit there and wait your turn to go through. This can take up to 25 minutes to get through this stretch of the highway. Since I started work at 8:00AM this morning, I left at about 7:15AM to ensure that I would get to the sanctuary on time. Luckily (or unluckily) enough for me, I missed the pilot car! So I got to work about half an hour early. Once I got into the sanctuary, I decided to go take a picture of the Grand Staircase Escalante from the upper canyon. (I blew it up pretty big, but it still doesn't do the picture justice!)

       Once 8:00 came around, I made my way over to...

     Not having much experience with bunnies, I didn't really know what to expect. I walked in and met the staff: Michele, Bryan, and Jason... Who are all SUPER nice! Now that my first day is over, I can tell you that I'm in love with bunnies!!! Shocker, right? I spent the majority of my day cleaning and sweeping kennels, doing laundry, and feeding. Not too grueling. Right now, the sanctuary has about 85 bunnies! I had the pleasure of watching the staff attempt to "bond" two bunnies. For those of you who aren't too familiar with bunnies, they prefer to have a companion or a 'forever friend', so they try to bond or introduce them to one another within a gated area. This bonding process can take up to 3 weeks. Today, they were trying to bond Cadbury (the brown one) and Bugzie (the white one). They got along very well and showed no signs of aggression towards one another. They are too cute!

       While cleaning one of the kennels, I made a new friend. Her name is Harley. I spent some time in Harley's kennel just hanging out with her. She was one of the only bunnies that didn't run away from me and actually allowed me to pet her. Michele suggested that I give Harley a "veggie bowl", which is one of her favorite treats!

       Doesn't get more adorable than that! She is such a love. I'm already trying to figure out how I can get her back to Pennsylvania :). Later in the afternoon, when all of the bunnies are fed their afternoon snack of fresh greens, I decided to go back to Harley's kennel and hand-feed her. I think she appreciated the help!

       Overall, it was a really good first day! And I can tell that it's going to be a great week and I'm going to enjoy my time spent at the Bunny House! Sadly, I got stuck waiting for the pilot car on my way home, so my commute took me about 30 minutes instead of 15! Oh well, it's not so bad when this is your view :).....

Happy Mother's Day!

       I want to start off this post by wishing all moms a Happy Mother's Day, and especially my own mama who I'm missing terribly today! Love you, Mom :)

       Today was my orientation at the sanctuary! I arrived at the Welcome Center at about 7:45 AM, and I stood there awkwardly with a few other people waiting for the doors to open at 8:00 AM. While I was waiting, I had the pleasure of watching at least a dozen hummingbirds congregate around a feeder on the deck. I've never seen so many hummingbirds in my life! Once we got inside, I met the other interns, and the Intern Coordinator, Amberly (I'm actually staying with Amberly for the duration of my internship!)... There are 6 other interns, and we are all females! We're all from different places all over the country, which is cool.


       We started off the day by watching some introductory/informational videos about Best Friends, and then we took a tour of the sanctuary! FYI - the sanctuary covers about 3,700 acres!  We began driving along a dirt road where we saw horses in their pastures, waiting to be fed. As we drove from the lower canyon to the upper canyon, we came across Angels Rest, where they lay animals who are no longer with us. Even though I only got to see it from within a moving van... I can say that it is truly breathtaking, and so beautiful. I can't wait to visit Angels Rest in my free time. Then we ventured into Cat World, as well as, Dogtown Heights. I met a few kitties and a sweet pitbull named Rosebud. Since it was chilly today, we kept it moving pretty quickly, so I only got to see most of Dogtown from the van. (Boo!). After the sanctuary tour concluded, we got lunch at the Village Cafe! The Village Cafe is vegetarian with vegan options as well! If I want, I can eat lunch there everyday for just $5. Not too shabby! After my yummy lunch, we got a personal tour of the Parrots! I'm not really a "bird person" so I wasn't too thrilled about this tour... But once we got there, I learned some pretty cool, new things. And some of the birds were just absolutely gorgeous.


       At the end of the day, we sat down as a group and discussed our duties and animal assignments for this upcoming week. I am in bunnies this week! I don't have too much personal experience with bunnies, so I'm looking forward to learning more about the cute, little, fuzzy creatures! Not exactly sure what my duties will be yet, but I'm anxious to see what I'll be doing all week.


       Halfway through the day today, I receive this picture from my sister, Carly....

      Most of you know that Lola is my WORLD. So when I saw this picture of her lying on my bed, looking super depressed... I didn't know whether to smile or cry. I miss her sooooo much, and I can't believe I have to wait more than a month until I see her again! I guess I should apologize now for all of the random/irrelevant pictures that I'll be posting of Lola... I just miss her so much, I can't take it!

       Well, tomorrow is the first "real" day of my 5-week internship! Basically, my schedule will be working 8:00AM-5:00PM, Monday-Friday, and I'll have my weekends off! I don't really know what to expect tomorrow, so your guess is as good as mine!

       I'll try to capture as many cute photos of bunnies as I can! :)