The Animal Care Team is the backbone of Asheville Humane Society. From feeding, cleaning, and monitoring, to bonding, playing, and walking, our Animal Care Team members are essential to keeping our organization afloat. Every Monday we will be highlighting a team member who has shown exceptional care and dedication to the animals in our care and our mission.
Meet Grace
Animal Care Team Member
What does it mean to you to work in animal care?
For me, it means being able to love and care for the animals in our care. A lot of them either came in as strays or have been surrendered and its nice to be able to love on and support them during vulnerable times. The shelter environment can be overwhelming for some animals, and it’s nice to be able to care for them during their stays and try to make them feel comfortable and safe.
What are some of the best parts of your job?
I work in the Adoption Center often, so I love seeing animals get looked at by potential adopters and hopefully adopted! It’s so rewarding to see a dog you’ve worked with for so long meet their “person” and head off to their forever home.
What are some of the hardest parts of your job?
Seeing animals come in from abusive situations. It breaks my heart when animals come in underweight or with wounds on their bodies and who haven’t been shown the love they deserve. It’s also hard when we lose animals due to unforeseen circumstances.
Have you had any moment that has really stuck out to you as a reason you keep coming back? Or, why do you keep coming back?
We’ve had a handful of dogs since I’ve started working here, come into our care extremely underweight, emaciated, and so hungry. Those dogs end up on a feeding plan to gain weight and then into foster care to help with their medical needs. It’s really exciting when you see them again in a couple of weeks having gained their weight back and their bubbly personalities shining through because they feel better. They’ve gotten adopted after they are in good health again, and it’s so nice to know that they are safe and don’t have to worry about where their next meal might come from.
Why do you feel so passionately about animals?
It’s nice to be able to care for something that doesn’t have much to offer in return. I love seeing the dogs excited for mealtime or potty breaks, and it’s just so rewarding to bring them happiness!
What do you want the public to know about your job?
That Animal Care is not always petting puppies and playing with kittens. It’s hard work and exhausting. I frequently come home with random bruises and scratches on my body and poop on my shirt that I have no clue where it came from. But, I wouldn’t change any of that and it’s genuinely rewarding to do what we do on a day to day basis!
