A free resource for your adopters (ready to print or send)


Dog parks, lots of visitors and visits to Home Depot are a hard No.

Hello Friends,

We put together a one-page guide for new adopters covering the first 72 hours after bringing a dog home, what to do, what to skip, and how to set the dog up to actually decompress instead of spiral. Here is the complete blog post.

It's the stuff most adopters need to hear and don't: keep the world small, watch before you train, secure the exits, don't take anything personally. Short enough to read in two minutes. Direct enough to actually be useful.

You can drop it in adoption folders, attach it to your post-adoption email, or hand it out at pickup. It's a Word Doc so you can brand it for your rescue or shelter or make any changes unique to your situation.

Download the handout here: The First 72 Hours​

If your adopters find it useful, feel free to point them toward Shelter Shift for more. We cover the real, unglamorous side of rescue and adoption, the stuff that actually helps people keep their dogs.

Thanks for the work you do.

— Roxanne

Thank you

for following, reading, and being part of the solution to the animal crisis. You are appreciated.

Roxanne

605 Mango Tree Dr, Edgewater, FL 32132
​Unsubscribe · Preferences​

The Shelter Shift

If you've been in this world long enough, you know sheltering isn't just about housing animals. It's about problem-solving, adapting, and constantly working to do better for the animals in your care. And let's be honest, it's not easy. Overcrowding, limited resources, and burnout can overwhelm even the most passionate among us. Sign up and get practical, no-nonsense insights on intake, adoptions, staff retention, and post-adoption follow-up, straight from someone who has run these systems.

Read more from The Shelter Shift

Just a quick note if you missed this webinar it was a good conversation sponsored by Who Will Let the Dogs Out. It is available now on YouTube Listen Here Have a great Sunday Roxanne 605 Mango Tree Dr, Edgewater, FL 32132Unsubscribe · Preferences

If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you already know I have some strong opinions about where animal sheltering is headed. I don’t think pretending everything is fine is helping anybody. Shelters are full. Rescues are overwhelmed. Communities are struggling to find help when they need it. Spay and neuter access has become harder in many places. Dogs are staying in shelters longer. Staff are burning out. And somewhere along the way, we started measuring success by a number instead of...

Hello Reader, We talk a lot about compassion fatigue in animal welfare. It is real. Rescue workers become exhausted, angry, cynical, or leave the field entirely. Sometimes the animals aren’t what’s wearing people down. It’s the people. The public has become increasingly hard to handle. The current environment in this country encourages entitlement, and people are saying and doing whatever they want with no consequences. It’s being screamed at because you can’t waive a fee, return an animal...