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Thank you to everyone for your hard work this past week as Dallas faced tricky weather conditions. Our shelter staff braved the icy roads to come care for our shelter animals, and our field team responded to more than 800 calls around the clock in freezing temperatures.
We appreciate how dedicated all of you are to our animals and our mission, and our residents are truly grateful for your service to the community.
Manager Sandy Castillo and ASO Andrew Sanchez stepped up to the plate by taking on a last minute request for a media interview. A WFAA reporter followed them around and we're so proud of how they represented the Field team and Dallas Animal Services. Check out the video story here.
We know that the breach of the clean break and the increase in euthanasia is difficult and disappointing news for everyone, but our team continues to work daily to identify outside-the-box strategies and pull every resource at our disposal to overcome this hurdle and save more lives. Dr. Newbury at the University of Wisconsin warned us from the beginning that setbacks would be very likely due to the size of our building and population, but she remains confident that we can succeed in eradicating CIV and become the largest single building shelter in the country to accomplish this action. We are continuing to work with her team to fight this outbreak and are adjusting our strategies accordingly as we prepare to start a new clean break. One of the key changes we must make is to return to operating within our building’s population limitations.
We remain committed to our overall mission to #BeDallas90 and achieving, sustaining, and surpassing a 90% live release rate, and we know we can only do that together. Thank you all for sticking with us through these changes as we work to get back on track to #BeDallas90.
We are on track to restart the clean break on February 14th.
When you see an animal that has been starved, your first instinct is probably to give them lots and lots of food, but this can make them sicker or even lead to death. When an animal comes in that is very thin, the DAS Medical Team puts them on what is called a “Refeeding Schedule”, which is designed to slowly reintroduce nutritious food at a pace that their body can handle. Please DO NOT give very thin dogs treats or extra servings of food, it can lead to additional weight loss, anemia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, neurological problems, and even death.
 That pet that's tugging at your heartstrings every time you walk past their kennel? You can help them get adopted! We want to feature our wonderful staff more and get some insight into their favorite pets. If you are interested in taking your photo with your "Staff Favorite" for our social media posts, email us at DASPIO@Dallas.Gov so we can get you scheduled for a quick and easy photoshoot!
Want to help work on projects to build camaraderie and have some fun with your coworkers? Join the Employee Appreciation Group and help us make DAS an even better place to work. Email jillian.appelbaum@dallas.gov if interested!
Thank you all for attending the compassion fatigue webinar with Jessica Dolce.
If you missed the event or would like to review the material again, you can view the webinar recording here.
More resources regarding compassion fatigue provided for you by Jessica:
Stress Zones and Actions
Hot Walk and Talk
Managing Anger, Frustration, and Resentment on Your Team
STOP
SCARF Model
SEEDS
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