Visiting Best Friends

Re: NMHP Sanctuary Visit 2009

Gregg — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:21:25 GMT

Ok, first off I’ll say right up front that while I am going to try, I don’t see any way I can put into words what I experienced in terms of emotions, feelings, the effect my visit had on my life—those things that involve such a high level of feeling. I can tell you what I did—but how do I get across the impact visiting Best Friends had on me—and I think a lot of others.

First off the setting. Where do I start with superlatives? The beauty, the feeling of being surrounded by pure nature, the awe of the geography. Well, that doesn’t begin to do justice. This setting is perfect for such an effort as Best Friends. The setting permeates everything—the look of the grounds, the way the buildings fit in, the way the animals seem to be at home no matter what their situation, even though the goal is to find almost all of them forever homes. It’s a place you just can’t help but feel the desire and almost a need to be a part of. Not just giving money or being someone who loves animals, but being a part of the work they do. It’s a place where hours feel like minutes and working with the people and the animals feels like a calling. More on this later.

The group I was with was scheduled to spend the morning touring Best Friends, then spending the afternoon volunteering with the dogs. Some folks helped with cats and others went to meetings with founders or other staff to discuss issues. I look forward to hearing their experiences. We had a great warm up to all that though—the dinner Sunday night when a number of staff came into town to sit with us, share a dinner and share what they did and their perspectives. I want to thank them for doing that-- it really set the stage for how we were treated. Ok, let me back up—the first glimpse was provided by those who gave up their Sunday to drive to Vegas, pick us up and take up to Kanab.

Back to the dinner—the food was quite tasty, the episode of Dogtown as great and those staff members—answering questions, sharing what they did and how it fit into the whole effort of the Sanctuary. I learned a lot about water that night!! You’d be amazed at what’s involved in making sure Best Friends has the water needed to run everything.

I want to cover our tour Monday morning. I feel that a few things that happened say a lot about a few things. First, never underestimate how mesmerized a group of 10 can get with the simplest of things. Our guide Diane became “painfully” aware of this right away. She was trying to keep us on schedule so we could see a bit of everything. But we had other plans. We’d wonder off looking at an animal, or we’d keep asking questions because the information was so interesting and there was so much to learn. Or we’d wonder off towards more animals. She was great with us though, no matter how much we wanted to stay at every area we came to. Don’t get me wrong—I loved being in the group of 10 I was with—I think a lot of us bonded. I know a lot of us talked animals and talked issues/ideas till we got out of the vans at the airport! This is the hard part to allow anyone reading this to get the feelings and emotions. It was what we saw, what we experienced and how we were treated that allowed for such an open exchange of words, feelings, ideas and friendship. I don’t know if Diane is aware of this but she really had a big effect on the experience the 10 of us had on the three hour tour.

Lunch separated our tour and our volunteering experience. Let’s just say that we were provided a perfect transition. The food, the view, the whole lunch was exceptional. A word though on a specific place. I was told before I left for the conference by more than one person that if given the chance to go to Angel’s Rest to make sure to spend some time there. Wow—what an understatement! And I want to mention Lenny. He takes care of Angel’s Rest. He hasn’t always been there, but I can attest to why he should stay as long as possible. Angel’s Rest is in Lenny. And Lenny is in Angel’s Rest. As soon as he starts speaking, you can feel it. You don’t hear his words—you feel them. And I don’t think it matters what your belief system is. Again, not sure how to appropriately convey all of this about Angel’s Rest and about Lenny. I do believe once you’ve been there, you will know. All 10 of us sure know.

Have you ever walked into a place where people are working really hard and they have lots to do? And on top of that you r walking in causes them more work yet? Well, if it hasn’t happened to you before, it will if you volunteer at Best Friends. In all of that though, what happens is you are made to feel a part of them—them being the staff and they animals. You are genuinely welcome there. It doesn’t matter of you sit with a dog, walk a dog, scoop poop, sweep walkways—they treat you so well even though they have so much to do. The staff want you to feel great while you’re there and after you leave. Our group of 10 was no exception. I have a specific story to share that really hits this point home.

The person we were handed over to for our dog experience is Paul a caregiver. He’s a bit tall, thin build, a very quiet unassuming voice and the same in mannerisms. You can see a picture of him if you go to the Guardian Angel link and look at Barry’s update that is up right now. We were spread all over the place and he made sure we were well taken care of by the other care givers at the three different buildings we helped at. By the way, those three caregivers treated us very well by the accounts I heard. At the end of our time he worked hard getting us all back together and of course much like we did with Diane, our group made us behind schedule. Everyone wanted to see the Vick dogs. Of course we couldn't see any of the Vick dogs in person as they can only be handled by staff. Many were bummed even though we already knew we couldn't work with any of them.

Once he had us all rounded up, he offered to get Denzel (that was who everyone wanted to see) and walk him around the van if we all promised to stay in the van and not even open the doors. Of course we all said yes! He got Denzel, walked him all around the van so folks could take pictures. He stopped and gave Denzel a treat and Denzel gave him lots of love. Everyone went nuts at how cool it was.

1 person couldn't get any pictures so Paul took Denzel back to his run, then too that person's camera and went back to the run to get a couple of pictures for that person. Talk about going the extra 5 miles! Talking about making us feel special. He didn’t have to do that. More on this action and Paul in a bit.

That evening there us a dinner schedule for us, and a number of founders have offered to spent their evening with us, all of them sitting at different tables so we can hear some very good stories! At the beginning of the dinner all of the founders and the staff having dinner with us were introduced. As you can imagine—well, I hope you can anyway, the founders there created quite a presence. We were surrounded by a number of the group who built Best Friends literally from the ground. It was very inspiring! Each and every founder was given a warm round of applause by all of us. Paul happened to be one of the staff that had dinner with us. Of course he was introduced just like the other staff and founders. Believe it or not, Paul got the biggest round of applause of anyone--including any founder. The 10 of us let everyone know with applause and rooting what it meant to us that he did that act of bringing out Denzel when he didn’t have to do anything like that. I think Paul was taken by surprise!

This is the kind of thing that really hits you emotionally and creates such strong feelings about being at Best Friends. Gabriel De Peyer, one of the founders, gave the keynote speech. He spoke about the beginning, what is happening now and what the future could hold. He brought up a point that I think folks at Best Friends exemplify. He said that they have learned it’s not enough to have staff that relate to the animals; the staff also have to be people persons. It is this one thing that the staff do so very well that made the visit so meaningful. It really makes a difference in how you feel when your visit is over—you remember the people as much as you remember the animals. Oh, how much you remember those animals!!

I know I’ve felt out a lot of names. It’s not for thinking they didn’t make the visit great, because they did. Each animal area welcomed us and answered our stream of questions. So folks we interacted with a lot though, and I want to mention one more person. From the time we loaded up in Vegas till the time we loaded up to go back to Vegas, Pat was always there making sure everything ran smoothly. I want to assure everyone that smooth was an understatement. Pat gave up a lot of her time to make our experience special. She treated us great. She made sure everything that was supposed to happen did so, and did on time. For three days we were pampered and she made sure of it. Not till Monday night did I find out that she isn’t even a staff member. She’s a volunteer! Thank you so much Pat!

I’ll apologize again for not being able to convey the impact the visit to Best Friends had on me—and I think on so many others. I wanted to try though. How does one say thank you appropriately to all of these folks who gave so much effort to make our visit so special?

Featured Visitor - "Cats Rule! (but Dogs are Cool Too)"

dianeg — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 17:07:59 GMT

Best Friends is totally blessed with the number of truly amazing volunteers we have – many of whom come out at least once a year, sometimes more, and think nothing of working as hard as the caregivers do – all on their precious time off work. Then they go home, and continue the volunteering at home, in addition to their regular jobs!

Cyndi Pearce is one of these people. Cyndi is primarily a cat person, and back in 1999 she read an article in the local newspaper (Raleigh, North Carolina) about a new no-kill shelter – SAFE Haven for Cats. She mentioned “I had been wanting to volunteer at a shelter but emotionally could not handle working at a kill facility so this was great news, finally a place I could feel good about what they are doing for the animals.” She started out with cleaning, moved into socializing, doing tours, answering the phones, adoption counselor – pretty much the whole shebang. She still volunteers there, as well as another no-kill shelter in Cary, called Cat Angels. She said the big reward for her in volunteering is “seeing how the animals respond to the love and affection they receive.”

She first came out to visit Best Friends in December of 2005, after surfing the Internet for no-kill shelters – and was so impressed with what she read, she couldn’t wait to visit! While here, she fell in love. Her company gives its workers a week of paid volunteer time each year, so Cindy has been able to volunteer at Best Friends twice a year, since her first visit. She particularly enjoys volunteering in the winter, when the tourists are all gone, and she feels the need is greater. “On my first visit they had me working in Kitty Motel for the whole week, I was head over heels in love with all the cats there and that has been my favorite building ever since, just don’t tell the cats in Jills Diner, the Colonels Barracks, or Bentons! What can I say, I love them all! I’m also in awe of the caregivers there, some of the most wonderful people I’ve ever met!”

Kitty Motel is home to some of the Sanctuarys ‘special needs’ cats. There are a few cats in the lobby who have cerebellar hypoplasia, several with paralyzed back legs, and the infamous Scooter – a cat with NO back legs, amongst others. There are several rooms in the building – one for geriatric kitties, 2 for FIV positive, and my personal favorite – The Incontinental Suite. The special needs kitties are the ones that steal Cyndis heart. She carries this love to her home, where she & her husband Gary have 4 kitties. 3 are blind, and one is 3 legged. “We joke we don’t take any cat in that has all it’s working parts J. They are truly amazing and teach us something each day.”

Cyndi also – in all her free time! – takes care of a feral colony that she came across, ironically, after a visit to Best Friends. Her flight had come in late, so she asked Gary to stop at a fast food restaurant so she could get a bite, and saw several cats dumpster diving for food. She was able to figure out that they were coming from the woods across the street of the fast food place, so she set up a feeding area for them in the woods, using large Rubbermaid containers to put the food and water in, as well as some hay for bedding. She has since managed to trap 8 of the cats and had them spayed and neutered.

Cyndi exemplifies so many of our wonderful volunteers – she has truly made the world a better place through kindness to animals. Thank you Cyndi!

Written by Jennifer Johnson

Photo Taken by Linda Leary

Re: Volunteering, working, and/or Visiting in the Winter

pattycatty — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 13:44:59 GMT

Hi Diane,

I think the cost of living is relative to where you are coming from. I live in South Florida, so it would be more cost effective living in Kanab at the moment. I think most who feel that Kanab is expensive may be living in areas of the country with low cost of living. If you are used to Chicago weather, I doubt you'd find mountain desert winters all that challenging, though you are having to deal with curvy mountain driving which can be treacherous with the wind and a light dusting of snow. I always recommend several visits before making any kind of decision about a permanent move.

Re: Volunteering, working, and/or Visiting in the Winter

sharkster — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 21:55:01 GMT

Hi Diane,

I actually visited last December and the weather was fine. I was there from like the 5th to the 10th I believe somewhere around there. It got cold at night and was cold in the morning but by late morning the warmed was ver comfortable. Just a sweatshirt was fine.

The Cabins and Cottages on BF's property are cheaper to rent , I believe the cabin was about $55 a night and cottages were 70. I stayed in the cabin because I went by myself and the cabin was GREAT, I really loved it ,big enough for me and a sleepover dog. There are hotels in town and I know some are BF's friendly and some give discounts. I'm not sure what you ment by "the roads being open" because the roads aren't closed. The only thing about renting one of their cabins or cottages is that they fill up very fast, you can go on the website and they update daily which cabins/cottages are avail when and for how long http://network.bestfriends.org/groups/visitors/pages/Resources.aspx click on the updates vacancies for cottages/cabins.

I've looked into the living idea out in Kanab and its not the cheap. I thought you might beable to get a good deal on houses there since its a VERY SMALL town, but to my surprise they aren't that cheap.

I've been told it gets extremly hot there in the summer but no humidity. Anyway I really enjoyed my time there in december because I actually enjoy cooler weather and when your walking dogs for most of the day which I did it was great that the weather was cooler and more comfortable

Hope this helped and if you go you wont be dissappointed.

Laurie

Re: Volunteering, working, and/or Visiting in the Winter

OwnedbyPets — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 21:10:24 GMT

Hi Diane,

Welcome to the network. From Planning Your Visit:

http://www.bestfriends.org/atthesanctuary/angelcanyon/visitorfaq.cfm

Climate/Time Zone. Kanab sits at a high-desert elevation of approx. 5,000 ft and is in the Mountain Time Zone.
Jan-March: Typically cold and sunny, often snows or rains. Can also be sunny, warm, and in the mid-60's. Be prepared for all types of weather.
April-June: April can be stormy and windy. Otherwise sunny 50's-70's through May. June is warmer, usually into the 80's.
July-Aug: Our hottest months, often 90-100 degrees. We typically experience summer thunderstorms and rain during this season, although it is usually brief. There is a danger of flash floods in canyons and washes. Hikers need to exercise great caution.
Sept-Oct: Once the summer rains are over, it is typically dry, mild, and sunny. Our best season to be outdoors. Beautiful fall colors.
Nov-Dec: Occasional snow before Thanksgiving, but November can also be mild and beautiful. December is cold, often with rain or snow.

I'm not sure what the housing prices are like now since the crash. I think there is a forum just for that, but I cannot recall the name.

Volunteering, working, and/or Visiting in the Winter

fdjs — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 18:20:57 GMT

BF sounds like the place for me ... wish it had been around when I was very young! However, I still have a lot of energy & desire to be with critters in nature - currently I'm a "Bark Buddy" with the local SPCA.

Would I be better off visiting in December (or any of the winter months) or is it necessary or best to wait for the roads to open, etc? Reading the website I have the impression that the most inexpensive time is the winter (cost is important to me). Currently I live in Florida, however I have lived in Chicago - probably one of the coldest place I've been.

Also, if after visiting I found I really wanted to go back - maybe semi-permanently or even permanently - is it pricey to live in the area?

Thank you for any advice and insights!

Diane

Re: Visiting last week of October

ath — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:16:22 GMT

Thank you for the beautiful pictures.They brought back happy memories I couldn't help but smile when I looked at them. I was there the first week of Oct. for the very first time.I've always wanted to visit and I finally was able to what a place!!It's absolutely amazing the animals must feel like they're in heaven.I only took the tour, time was llimited, but I intend to go back next year and this time I hope to stay in one of the cottages and do some volunteer work, again thnak you for the pictures. ATH

Re: Visiting last week of October

lgcobb — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 22:10:51 GMT

Thanks for the great photo of Torreon at Morgaine's! He's one of the (many) cats I fell in love with when I was there in August.

Re: My visit 10/4 - 10/9

OwnedbyPets — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 19:39:56 GMT

Thanks for sharing the wonderful photos!

Max was like "hey, aren't we supposed to be taking a walk?"

Re: Vising from Delaware 10/6 - 10/9

OwnedbyPets — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 19:26:34 GMT

What a gorgeous dog! Congrats!

Re: Visiting last week of October

OwnedbyPets — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 19:21:10 GMT

Apparently they have some new felines in Bentons since we were there in Aug...

Re: Visiting last week of October

regansbox — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:26:35 GMT

Thanks for the photos! I totally don't recognize any of the Benton's Lobby cats! I'm slacking!

Visiting last week of October

Felis_sapien — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:17:51 GMT

I'm ba-a-ack. Once again, I'm at Best Friends during the last weekend in October. I'm here with some of my BFFs (Best Friends friends), and I am, of course, having a wonderful (and busy) time.

Because i am recovering from knee replacement surgery, my activities are a bit limited. I'm just socializing with kitties and dogs and taking in the occasional seminar that BF offers to volunteers.

I don't need to tell anyone who's been here what a wonderful place this is, even in the bracing chill of the past few days. Temp this morning is in the mid-20s. Brrr. And yesterday it was blustery but thankfully the snow never showed up.

I have posted some photos on my facebook site, and it tells me that if I want to share them I can provide the following links. I hope that's true, but if not I apologize for providing some bum links.

Here's a quick photo review so far. Hope you enjoy it.

The afternoon at Morgaine's

Benton's Lobby

Sunday (first day at BF)

Looking forward to more fun with furry friends and people. Will keep you posted on developments. Halloween is coming. LOL!

Re: Vising from Delaware 10/6 - 10/9

WindsWhisper — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 00:04:52 GMT

Hi!

The trip was good but the weather was nothing less than schizophrenic. I left Phillu at 7A - temp was low 60's. Got into Slat Lake City around noon - temp was below freezing. One hr flight to Vegas - temp was 80's. Four hr drive to Kanab - temp was 50's. It was unusually cold and wet the whole time I was there LOL.

As for Cammi - she's a sweetie. Shy but curious enough to work past it. She went on her first overnight with me - got in the car with no problem - walked into the hotel like she owned it - promptly jumped on the bed and went to sleep. No barking, whining, scratching chewing or accidents at all.

If you go here, you can see a pic of her in the the hotel room.....

http://network.bestfriends.org/groups/conrads_and_leopolds/forum/t/28982.aspx

She will be "air mailed" to me sometime in November. Between now and then, though I need to make a few changes here. Everybody at BF is very concerned she is a "flight risk", so I am working on some ways so that my 2 - smaller dogs can still use the cat door whenever they want, but keep access away from Cammi for now.

The most recent try at that is that I moved the sofa over in front of the window the cat door is in, and left just about 4 -5" of access next to and behind the sofa. The cats have NO problem with this and Bailey and Fox have figured out how to negotiate it - I still am amazed they easily fit thru a 6" x 8" door - but I believe that because Cammi is much taller and much longer, she won't be able to get out that door....

If she shows too much interest in it I can push the sofa flush against the windowsill, but then I will really need to watch Fox - she loves to go in and out at will - but once when she got out but the door got stuck and she couldn't get in she started visiting neighbors til she found a dog door - went in and made herself at home *sigh* She truly does feel entitled.....

Re: Vising from Delaware 10/6 - 10/9

lgcobb — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 23:19:05 GMT

How was your trip? Did you adopt Cammi? Inquiring minds want to know!

NMHP Sanctuary Visit 2009

pattiea — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 21:02:44 GMT

Sixty NMHP Conference attendees chose the optional Sanctuary Visit. Tell us about your experience!

In order to post to this Forum, you must be a fan of this group. Please click on "Become a Fan" in the right side of this page, and come back and share your experience with us.

Thank you.

My visit 10/4 - 10/9

mpjackson — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 18:04:52 GMT

Another successful and satisfying trip to Best Friends is in the books. I volunteered mostly in dogs this time with 2 afternoons with the kitties. I was able to get to some of the dog areas that I hadn't been to in the past (Peaches and Daisy Mae, Dulcies, Clubhouse, and Angel and Deja Lodges). One of the days I took Scooby for an outing to Lee's Ferry and the Navajo Bridge. As always it was very tough to leave, but I'll be back again in January.

Mike

Here's a link to all of my photos:

http://s480.photobucket.com/albums/rr163/mpjackson/BestFriends_Oct09/?albumview=slideshow

A few of my favorites.

Hera - one of my absolute favorites dogs.

Reuben doing what Reuben does best.

CalMar lobby cats

Re: Vising from Delaware 10/6 - 10/9

OwnedbyPets — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 22:49:32 GMT

"and Catworld (I think that's what they're calling it. Or Kittyville?). "

Back to Cat World Again :)

Sorry we missed you this year, hope you have a fabulous time!

Kay

Patti, Good luck with your adoption!

Re: Where to volunteer besides w/ dogs and cats?

slickabrina — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 18:49:00 GMT

I have actually volunteered in all the areas you mentioned! I would say pigs was probably my favorite. I volunteered for a morning and it involved feeding, watering and taking some for walks. Like mentioned previously, horses was riding on the feed truck and visiting with them. One of the times I was there we also cleaned some of the pastures. Birds does start early in the day so when we got there, the only thing to do was clean out the large cockatiel cage. We also spent some time with Aramis (used to be in Guardian Angel program). As for the bunnies, that was another area that gets most things done in the morning and I was there in the afternoon. It basically involved giving treats, visiting with the rabbits and then we also gave fresh water.

But like Patty mentioned, definitely sign up early as these areas are smaller and can't take the number of volunteers that dogs and cats can (I was told some summer days see 100+ volunteers in dogs!).

Re: Where to volunteer besides w/ dogs and cats?

anaclef — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 00:44:35 GMT

Although I've never volunteered in Horses, my daughter did an internship there, and she says that you ride the feed truck to make the rounds feeding the horses. By the time the morning feedings are done, it's time to start the afternoon rounds. You get to see all the beautiful horses, of course, and the horse pastures, which are also beautiful--and located in some areas of the canyon you don't get to see in Dogs and Cats.