It seems to me there are a couple of issues here. I don't think a shelter wants just any JoeBloe walking in one day to say "hey I'd like to help by walking your dogs". The shelter needs to know something about its volunteers though a criminal check might be a bit much. If someone has been volunteering at a shelter for some time so the staff knows them and now new policies are being put into effect, then the shelter should have some sort of informational meeting/handout for all its volunteers so they know what and why. And even when volunteers have been accepted, some mini-training should be included for handling dogs. Many shelter dogs have been abused so I wouldn't want a volunteer who grew up under the "old" system of training with spanking and collar yerking now handling a special needs dog. Actual certification for dog walkers - no - the government intrudes enough.
Moe the Wonder-Dog!
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Moe is our 6 year old German Shepherd/Rott Weiler (mostly) mix. We call him the wonder-dog because we wonder what else he is as well β¦ well that, and he has been through so much and brought us through a lot of trying times. We got him as a puppy--his previous family didn't spay his mom, so they had a litter of puppies they were giving away outside of the local grocery store. We fell in love with him at first sight. A week after we got him, we found out he had parvo. Luckily, we caught it in time, but the vet said the parvo treatment would stunt his growth, so he is quite a bit smaller than he should have been.
He is our big, cuddley teddy bear and the household door greeter... he thinks that everyone that comes to our house is coming to see him, and most of them get a hug (he jumps up and puts both paws on their waist and waits for ear scratches). Although it started out a little rough, he is also Cody's best friend and right paw dog. One day they are going to take over the world together.
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Moe is a very handsome dog! That's a nice mix too! Thanks for putting up his pics.
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Very cute and sweet story. Thank you so much for sharing..
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Moe is lovely, i can see the Rotty in him.