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| - A few years ago, I lost my partner and love of my life in a tragic accident. While struggling with my horrific grief and having difficulty getting back into life as I once knew it, my grief counselor suggested that I "help something else" in order to help myself feel better. We decided that since I was an animal lover I would try volunteering at an animal shelter. I was not working, so I had a lot of time and wanted the shelter to feel right. I visited a few, they all do good work, but the one that kept drawing me back was the ARL. Yes, the building is old, it's a bit run down, but that doesn't stop the staff and administration from doing the best they can with so very little and in not the best of space. I saw a bathroom be "renovated into a vet tech office, I saw the janitor's closet renovated and made in to the "rodent room." Where cats once lived in cages along the halls of the ARL a new building next door, an old gas station was made into the "Cat Adoption Center!" When you have staff that are still young and are going on 5-10 years + at the same shelter, (same place of employment for that matter) you know something about the place is right! I volunteer easily 30 hours a week at the ARL, I get to see the good, the bad and the ugly, and I can tell you first hand that the good is in the staff, the Executive Director, Dan Rossi, and all of the work that goes on for the animals. The staff knows EVERY one of the animals, they do all they can to care for them, and keep the doors WIDE open for both domestic and wild animals, even if that means a staff member or volunteer takes a cat or dog home! The answer is never ever "no" to any animal. I also volunteer for the Humane Society of the United States and travel around the countryside working on dogfighting raids, cruelty, hoarding, natural disasters, and the ARL has never said no to me when I ask to bring animals back from incredibly sad or inhumane situations. Technically, by the numbers, it is a "no-kill" shelter, because it is open door people will often call it a "kill shelter." Yes, sometimes an animal does have to be euthanized. The ARL is the Animal Control shelter for the city of Pittsburgh and with that can bring some very upsetting and disturbing signs of animal cruelty. It can also mean it's the dog who just bit a kid that you just saw on the news. The ARL has an obligation to society to not let dangerous dogs back on the street, to euthanize when a dog is very sick or is very aggressive to humans or other animals, and trust me, I have held many of those dogs as they are put to sleep and I always am so thankful that the vet staff we have are so compassionate and do the euthanasia in the most humane manner. That's a tough job, it's heartbreaking, but in some cases it has to be done for the good of the animal and for the safety of society. I admire the work and staff of the ARL and will continue to devote my time to them and thank them for the wonderful work they do on behalf of the city of Pittsburgh and all of the wild and domestic animals alike. We are so lucky to have them in our area and as our city shelter.
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