Meet Joyce! RASKC is extremely pleased to honor Joyce Grajczyk as Volunteer of the Month. She is one of the hardest working volunteers and one of the very few volunteers who has received at least three written kudos from staff.

For example, Animal Control Officer Diana Fowler wrote, “Has Shelter Helper Joyce been a Volunteer of the Month yet? If not, she should be. She is such a hard worker, always looking for things to do, always lending a helping hand, very sweet and friendly, and usually stays way later than her scheduled time just to finish her tasks.”

To read an interview with Joyce, go to our website or blog.

If you are interested in becoming a RASKC volunteer, please check back after the governor’s Stay Home order has lifted. If you are especially interested in foster training, however, RASKC is ready to onboard you. Click here and scroll down to the Getting Started section. Click on the plus sign, then watch training modules #1, #2, and #4 and answer the quiz questions. We look forward to working with you!

Meet Moe! RASKC is super happy to shine the spotlight on Moe Amalla-Walter as an Outstanding New Volunteer. When RASKC is operating normally, Moe volunteers twice each week- on the Early Morning Cat Crew and on our Cat Meet & Greet Team. She even enlisted her delightful 83-year old grandmother Shirley to volunteer too!

Moe is very skilled and extremely reliable. She’s 24 years old and a resident of Auburn. Moe grew up with pets and comes from a family of animal lovers. Some of her aunts rescue horses. Another aunt nurtures birds in a large aviary.

Moe works as a figure-skating coach. She also volunteers both as the Test Chair and the Membership Chair for the Kent Valley Figure Skating Club. Moe says, “It can be stressful at times, but at the end of the day it’s nice knowing that I helped a skater get closer to their dreams.”

When asked about her volunteer work at RASKC, Moe responded, “It has been so fulfilling. The Early Morning Cat Crew (EMCC), while definitely more labor intensive, is one of the best jobs. There’s an entire two hours between the end of the shift and when the public is allowed in, when I can pet all the cats that I want. Plus, I have a great EMCC team that I work with! I would be lost without them. Cat Meet & Greet is great, because I get to play matchmaker with people and cats. Nothing feels better than knowing I helped a cat find a good home. And I get to do with this with my grandma, which makes it twice as fun. RASKC is just a great place to volunteer at. 😊”

We hope that Moe and Shirley continue to swizzle and twizzle at RASKC for many years!

Earlier this week RASKC pet adoptions resumed at our Kent location in a totally new way- Adoptions by Appointment! 

Due to COVID-19, we have changed our adoption process by limiting the number of people on our adoption floor to one household per hour. Appointments allow for a total of thirty minutes of a meet and greet with up to three pets, and twenty minutes of adoption paperwork processing that includes opportunities for questions and guidance. In between the sessions, staff clean up and prep for the next visitors.

Watch our adoption website for real time updates on available adoptable animals. We encourage you to keep your appointment only if you genuinely intend to adopt. We want to give as many pets and people the opportunity to match.

We are so happy with the amount of people who trust us with finding their new best friend!

For information on all our services, read our blog post - “We are here for you."

RASKC is working with several local animal-shelters to bring a mobile pet-food bank to Tukwila this Wednesday, May 20, from 12pm- 4pm at Westfield Southcenter. For any updates, follow RASKC on social media or check the calendar of events on our website.

Seattle Humane, Seattle Animal Shelter, Auburn Valley Humane Society, Pasado’s Safe Haven, and RASKC have been working together to distribute free pet-food in Auburn, Enumclaw, and White Center. The alliance looks forward to the event in Tukwila this week and hopefully to more events throughout King County.

GreaterGood donated about 115,000 pounds of pet food, delivered in three truck loads, for distribution. These donations sustain the mobile pet-food banks and are also brought to various food banks in Puget Sound. Click here for an interactive map of where free pet-food is available.

If you would like to make a donation to support this work, RASKC asks that you donate a gift card. This saves room and provides flexibility. Thanks!

Last Sunday RASKC celebrated Mother’s Day by honoring pet foster moms with a blog posting, highlighting the exceptional achievements of about 60 top foster volunteers.

“I would like to honor all foster moms with my greatest admiration,“ said Foster Care Coordinator Lori Mason, LVT. “You open your hearts and your homes to homeless pets across King County. We will be forever grateful.”

RASKC would also like to extend a heartfelt welcome to the over 100 new families who have joined our foster community since April 1 this year. Now almost 600 families receive emails from Lori.

If you would like to become a foster volunteer, click here and scroll down to the Getting Started section. Click on the plus sign, then watch training modules #1, #2, and #4 and answer the quiz questions.

Hurray for foster families!

RASKC needs towels. Cleaning up after 90 roosters is pretty darn messy, so we’d love to receive lots of towels.

If you would like to make a special donation to support RASKC’s efforts with the pet-food banks, please donate gift cards.

Our dog program would love to receive long leads, about 20- 50 feet or longer.  

Our foster program would love to receive: meat-based Gerber baby food; kitten playpens at least four feet across with zippers (not Velcro); snuggle kitties with a battery-generated heartbeat;  Miracle Nipples, both sizes; and pet food or cat litter for our Pet Treasure Chest.

If you would like to make other special donations to RASKC, please click here for our wish list on Amazon.

For more information about additional donations or in-kind gifts, visit the Donations page on our website.

Meet Amie! Amie has been working as a Licensed Vet Tech in RASKC’s Vet Clinic for almost a year. She’s one of the nicest people at RASKC.

Tell us about yourself. I grew up in Alaska, then moved to a small town called Buckley. I have lived there since I was 13 years old.  It’s hard to leave, because it is so wonderful! I have two daughters- Sophia (13 years old) and Sydney (9 years old). They keep me busy!  My daughters and I are outgoing.  And we love animals. Some animals that I have acquired over the years: a 16-year-old terrier named Twiggy, a Persian named Arthur Morgan, and an African ball python named Yukon Cornelius. 

Why did you decide to work at an agency that helps animals? I have always known I wanted to work with animals. When this opportunity came up, I knew I had to take it. 

What did you do prior to coming to RASKC? Prior to RASKC I worked and still do work at Sumner Veterinary Hospital. I have been there for 15 years and really enjoy the work, as well as people. 

What does your work for RASKC involve? I am responsible for preparing animals for surgery. I run anesthesia and make sure pets are up-to-date on vaccines, microchips, blood work, and so on. After surgery, I help animals recover and return them to their kennels, so they can move on to their forever homes. 

What is the best part about your job? The best part about my job is appreciating all the personalities these animals have. They really make my day, because they are all different.

What do you like to do when you’re not at work? I enjoy just being with my kids. My family and I love the ocean, clam digging, going to Mariners games, and, of course, taking care of our animals. We fish a lot and do a lot of art projects. We explore new places.  

Fun facts? I had both my kids in the same room at the hospital. My first fish I ever caught by myself was a Dolly Varden!