Meet Dawn!  RASKC is super happy to honor Dawn Detwiler, who lives in Kent. She is one of the longest-serving volunteers on a weekly shift. Dawn began volunteering at KCACC/ RASKC about 11 years ago! Previously she had volunteered at Seattle Humane in Bellevue for 10 years.

Extremely dedicated and very knowledgeable, Dawn volunteers on one of RASKC’s busiest shifts- Cat Meet & Greet, Saturdays, 12pm- 2pm. She is also in training for our new Cat Area Stray Team. Thank you, Dawn!

An interview with Dawn can be found on our website and blog.

If you are interested in becoming a RASKC volunteer, go here to fill out an application and register to attend new volunteer orientation.

,Meet Robyn!  Robyn has been volunteering on one of RASKC’s busiest Cat Meet and Greet shifts, Saturdays, 12pm- 2pm, since last year.

An Animal Care Technician wrote, “I wanted to let you know that a customer pulled me aside to compliment Robyn H. They were raving about how helpful she was!!”

Undoubtedly Robyn’s tremendous communication skills in her day job fundraising for a non-profit serve RASKC well too.

Robyn said, “I have so much fun meeting potential adopters, hearing about what they’re looking for, and connecting them with the perfect cat. Helping to make love connections with older cats is especially rewarding.”

She highlighted a time when “a big, strapping young man came in to look at the kittens. We handed him a kitten that nuzzled right up under his chin. He burst out laughing like a little kid. Just seeing someone react like that out of sheer joy will always be one of my favorite memories.”

Robyn grew up in Walla Walla with her family, including dogs, and spent most of her adult life in Los Angeles. While there she volunteered for about three years at the Pasadena Humane Society.

Thank you for your service, Robyn!

Last year 777 people volunteered to help RASKC in over 300 scheduled positions plus fostering. If you are interested in becoming a RASKC volunteer, go here to fill out an application and register to attend new volunteer orientation.

Dozens of people gathered last Thursday to honor Foster Care Coordinator Lori Mason and foster volunteers at a RASKC event held at the Old Spaghetti Factory in Tukwila.  

Every year for the past nine years, Foster Coordinator Lori Mason and the foster volunteers honor each other for their fantastic work in the past year and get ready to kick off kitten season.

Lori has been working at RASKC for over 19 years. She has earned the deep affection and tremendous loyalty from hundreds of foster volunteers through the years. Not only does Lori treat each volunteer and their families with humor and grace when conveying her vast knowledge of animals, she is “on call” to respond to foster volunteers whenever the Vet Clinic is closed- evenings and holidays.

“I am constantly amazed at how generous and kind RASKC foster volunteers are. They go to amazing efforts to help our animals time and time again. I am especially thankful to the foster volunteers who bottle feed baby kittens every four hours around the clock. And I have a special place in my heart for the fosters who care for our older hospice cats,” said Lori Mason.

Last year RASKC volunteers contributed 102,390 foster hours. Since late 2016 RASKC has named 22 fosters as Volunteer of the Month.

“Fostering is the most important way that you can help animals from the shelter,” said Volunteer Program Manager Sarah Luthens. “This involves taking care of RASKC animals in your home on a temporary basis. The shelter provides free food, free litter, free medicine and medical care for the foster animals—even heating discs and other supplies, if needed.”

If you are interested in fostering, register for an upcoming training in Kent on any of the following Thursdays from 4pm- 6:30pm

• May 23
• June 6
• June 13
• June 20

You will also learn about other volunteer roles too. For more information or to register for any of these trainings, go here.

RASKC’s Animal Control Officers always serve with pride and distinction. These days they are doing so in newly designed uniforms which feature a new color and badges.

The officers gave input into the design of the new uniforms.

In keeping with King County’s commitment to fight climate change, the old uniforms are not headed toward a landfill. After volunteers disassemble the King County patches, then some of the uniforms are being shared with other animal-control agencies to be re-used. The remainder will be conveyed to Goodwill or Value Village.

RASKC Pet Publicist Co-Lead Volunteers Jennie Larson and Tiffany Morin are working with staff to develop plans to reinvigorate ways that volunteers and members of the general public can help promote RASKC pets on social media. 

How can you help? Follow these volunteers and staff on social media who have dedicated Instagram accounts to promote RASKC pets: @tiffany4pets_raskc,   @jennie4pets_raskc  @raskcdogwalker,@raskcadoptables, @the_little_raskcals, @adoptme_raskc, @KingCountyPets 

Another way to help increase RASKC’s reach on Instagram is by engaging with the posts. Click “like," post a comment (“Love this dog!”), start a conversation (“Does this cat remind you of anyone?”), add hashtags (#RASKC #Kingcountypets), and share the posts of these RASKC volunteers and staff. The more followers and engagement we receive, the better chance our pets have of being seen and finding their forever homes. 

If you post photos of RASKC pets on Instagram, please contact Tiffany and Jennie at RASKCPetPublicist@kingcounty.gov so they can engage with you!

Animal Control Officer Diana Fowler has just been promoted from Animal Care Technician. She has worked at RASKC for almost five years. Diana is one of the staff who most often commends volunteers both aloud and in writing

Tell us about yourself. I grew up in Enumclaw and plan on living there for the rest of my life. I love the “small town vibe” plus all of my family and in-laws live just down the road from me (it’s a blessing and a curse). In fact, we live in the same home that not only my husband grew up in, but his mom had grown up in as well. My husband and I were in the same high school class and got married in 2016. We have two adorable and wild boys: Kolton who just turned four and baby Karter who is one year old. Despite working for RASKC, I miraculously own only two cats: Alex and Nubbin. This summer will mark five years of my working at RASKC.

What does your work at RASKC involve? When I worked as an Animal Care Technician, this involved primarily taking care of the shelter animals in the morning, followed by customer service (adoptions, redemptions, etc.) in the afternoon. As an Animal Control Officer, I respond to calls made by residents about issues such as trespassing complaints, stray animals, welfare checks, etc..

What is the best part of your job? The obvious answer is to see the happy ending for the animals! I also enjoy being able to help the public with education, resources, or just to be someone to vent to. I also love the relationships I have built with my coworkers and volunteers.

What did you do prior to coming to RASKC? I was a veterinary technician for nine years and have worked at a large animal vet and also an emergency veterinary hospital. I LOVED being a vet tech. I have somewhat of a morbid personality, so I was fascinated by some of the emergency cases we saw. Plus I enjoyed the fast-paced environment. There was always something different every day.

What do you do when you’re not at work? With two young boys, I just try to survive each day. But if there’s ever a time I get to escape from our kids, I enjoy eating a lot, doing craft projects, riding dirt bikes, playing video games, and going to concerts with my husband.

Please share a memorable experience from work. Shortly after I started, we had a guy come redeem his cat after it had been missing for TWO YEARS and from Portland! Thank goodness for microchips!

A memorable moment with the volunteers was after my maternity leave from the first kid I popped out. Vyrna and other volunteers had chipped in to get me a glider-style rocking chair from the RASKC garage sale. It was such a sweet gesture and I’m still using it for the new baby! RASKC really does have the most supportive staff and volunteers than any other place I’ve been.

Bertha is a three year-old black female cat, domestic long hair (ID #A582522).  This fabulous feline is incredibly sweet and loves attention!  She is playful and active, and loves to jump around.  Bertha resides in one of RASKC’s the colony rooms. She loves to spend time lounging in the catio, where she can enjoy the outdoors in the safety of a secure enclosure.  Bertha also enjoys being groomed and getting brushed.  With her gorgeous fur, she will need to be brushed to keep it looking fabulous.

Bertha came into the shelter with a bad wound on her back end that is healing nicely.  While she is still shaved on her back end, with time her beautiful fur will grow back and she will look as radiant as ever!

Bertha has a GREEN personality and is an adaptable cat who loves to go with the flow.  She is outgoing and carefree, and is patiently waiting for her forever home.

Bertha is spayed, litter box trained, current on vaccinations, and micro chipped.  Her $30 adoption fee also includes a free visit to the veterinarian of your choice, and 30 days of opt-in pet insurance through Trupanion.

You can find out more about Bertha on RASKC's website at www.kingcounty.gov/adoptapet. Click on "cat" and type in her name. 

You can also meet other animals available for adoption, 7 days a week at RASKC's King County Pet Adoption Center in Kent, located at 21615 64th Ave S; Monday - Friday: 12 noon - 6 p.m., Saturday - Sunday: 12 noon - 5 p.m. Phone: 206-296-7387 (PETS), email pets@kingcounty.gov.

RASKC features Pets of the Week on our website. Several suburban newspapers also highlight RASKC’s Pet of the Week, thanks usually to the work of volunteer Dawn Gerken. RASKC’s previous Pets of the Week can be viewed on our blog.

Volunteers recognized at Mentor Appreciation event. Cat Meet & Greet volunteers Karolyn Grimes and Victoria Andrew provide guidance to Big Picture High School interns Zoie Isenhour and Ethan Fouglger. They recently honored at an event sponsored by the high school.

March with King County in Pride Parade on Sunday morning, June 30. If you can please register prior to the event, so we know how many people to expect. For more information, contact Cameron Satterfield here.

Best Friends National Conference July 25-27 in Dallas, Texas. Consider attending this terrific gathering of animal-welfare staff and volunteers. More info here. RASKC engages in many collaborations with Best Friends.

Seeking more volunteers for the Seattle International Beer Fest fundraiser. The festival will donate $50 for every registered RASKC volunteer (21 years and over) who helps out for a three-hour shift on the evening of Saturday, July 13, and during the early afternoon on Sunday, July 14, at the Seattle Center. Last year RASKC provided the most volunteers than any other organization in the history of the festival. Over $4,000 was raised for the Angel Fund! For more information, contact volunteer Melissa Blake.

Memorial Day holiday: RASKC’s partner Petco stores and Reber Ranch will be open on Monday, May 27. Volunteer shifts are “on” at those venues, also “on” for Early Morning Cat Crew at RASKC/ Kent. Dog Walkers and Shelter Helpers: All shifts earlier than 4pm are “on,” and all shifts starting at 4pm or later are cancelled. Special holiday shifts for Dog Walkers have been added in light of the dogs’ early “tuck in” on this day. All Cat Meet & Greet shifts are cancelled on Memorial Day.

RASKC Dog Walkers: Inside-only for puppies. When we have puppies (six months or younger), it’s important not to take them outside due to their fragile immune system. Instead you may engage with them in the Dog Meet & Greet Room or in their kennel before you handle any other dogs.

Are you a King County employee? Volunteer at RASKC on paid time as part of the county’s volunteering policy. Employees are paid through their sick leave or, if needed, from sick leave donated from another employee. Paid volunteering of this type can occur up to three times a year, but does not include time fostering any animals in your home. For more information go here.