We worked at the Clowder House at the Animal Rescue League (ARL) this morning. We have been working at the Clowder House since we started volunteering. It is a 2-story cat housing unit built in 2017 to provide additional space for long term housing for cats who are not ready for adoption. Volunteers have to receive special training to work here as they may be dealing with cats with behavioral issues. While there may be more challenges working with cats at the Clowder House than the adoption area (taking precautions not to get bitten or scratched), we also learned that much of what affected the cats’ behavior come from their unpleasant past experiences (being abused or neglected, living in feces-filled homes etc). Thanks to the caring staff and volunteers, some of the cats do develop trust and become calmer over time, and they are moved to the adoption area.
