Joyce is a truly wonderful human, not only at the shelter but in her regular work hours as well. She has dedicated her career to special needs children working as a teacher’s assistant. She also runs marathons and is a talented artist! Since 2013, Joyce has spent over 1,500 hours volunteering at AAWL (WOW!). Through thick and thin she has been a vital member of our Cattery team.

When asked about the sorts of tasks Andy & Michelle G help out with around the Chandler Mall Adoption enter, Katlyn Riggs, the Adoption Center Manager, said “What do they NOT do?? They are incredible! They are reliable and basically do everything!

My name is Herman, and I was that “one more”. On Nov. 3^rd, you’re walking to give animals like me a second chance at life. From now until Nov. 3^rd, AAWL will give all funds raised for their Walk To Save Animals to their Medical Miracle Fund to help animals like me who need lifesaving medical care.

Carrying them out of the truck, we realized this may be the longest time they had been outside their entire lives. As we unloaded the six puppy mill rescues from our partner, we knew they were in for a long road to recovery, but it was worth it so they could be free. Ranging from 10 years old to barely one, all six had lived in cages barely larger than their bodies, forced to stand on metal grating their whole life, never walking on the ground or even outside.

Manny M. has been a volunteer for only 7 short months but has already logged more than 400 volunteer hours! He truly found his “place” when he landed at AAWL and we couldn’t be more thrilled to have him as part of our volunteer family. Manny has achieved one of the highest rankings when volunteering with our shelter dogs, a K3 volunteer, and is also a Mentor to new volunteers and a Playgroup Lead. For some volunteers coming into the shelter can be an overwhelming environment that can leave people feeling lost. Manny is not one of those volunteers!

I love you. I may never meet you, I may never lay with you on a comfy bed or lick your hand, but believe me when I say - I love you.

Volunteer Spotlight: Amy O.

We first met Dolores at AAWL when she was dumped through our front door as a 6 week old kitten. Terrified, she ran everywhere on a dislocated foot trying to hide. After a lot of coaxing and treats, we were able to catch her and start tending to her injury. During her exam, our veterinarian knew something else was wrong, proved by a very scary x-ray: Dolores’s stomach was full of trash! In the weeks of surviving on the streets, she had eaten plastics, sticks, and other pieces of garbage.

Mike M. has been a volunteer at AAWL for the past 4 and a half years, logging more than 3,550 hours of volunteer time! He started out as a Dog Walker, and still does that almost every visit to the shelter, but he really found his place volunteering in our shelter clinic helping animals get ready for adoption. Since volunteering in the clinic, Mike has regularly logged between 80 – 100 hours each month helping prep and recover animals during their surgeries.

Black Dog Syndrome: The mysterious, impossible to prove, totally true problem afflicting shelter dogs across the country.