Living in a shelter is a stressful time in an animal’s life, but, sadly, it’s a position that many animals find themselves in because of various circumstances. If an animal is lucky, they’ll be picked up by a no-kill shelter, but even then, they could spend months and sometimes years there, before getting adopted.
That’s why Kitsap Humane Society in Washington developed a new program called Puppuccino Pals, where volunteer Molly Clark takes a featured dog out for a ride in her car and heads to their local Starbucks.
The car ride itself would be worth it for the dog because the breaks they get from their kennels are few and far between, not to say anything of this particular shelter, but animals in shelters often get much less outside time than dogs in homes.
At the Starbucks, Clark orders a “puppuccino” for the dog; it’s on the chain’s secret menu and is just a small cup filled with whipped cream. We’re pretty sure that no dog has ever said no to whipped cream.
Kimberly Cizek Allen, events and outreach assistant coordinator at the Kitsap Humane Society, told The Dodo,
“The dogs LOVE the shelter breaks, and they adore the Puppuccinos. You can see it in their little eyes as they lick the whipped cream out of the cup.”
Clark takes photos of the dog while they enjoy their tasty treat to show off their cute side (okay they’re always cute, but their even CUTER side) and the Starbucks posts the photos to help them get adopted. The shelter also features them on Instagram to spread the word that they’re looking for a home.
Since not every dog is well-suited for an outing, the shelter will have Clark take another dog out and bring a Puppuccino back for the original dog selected for the program to take photos of them and help them get more exposure. They also get extra quiet room time or outside time, depending on their needs and abilities.
Every program that’s aimed at helping animals get adopted is a creative new venture that just might work, and we hope that this one is going well. If you think your local shelter should adopt a similar initiative, suggest this easy program to them to help their pups find their forever home!
What are your thoughts on this program? Please share, like, and comment on this article!
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