Exploring The World of Animal Shelters: An Inside Look At Ruff Haven

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An interview with Ruff Haven from Salt Lake City, Utah.

Introducing Ruff Haven

My name is Stanley O. Stensrud, and I am a co-founder and Board Member of Ruff Haven Crisis Sheltering, a 501c3, all-volunteer organization. The other co-founders are Kristina Pulsipher, Marisa Hernandez, and Kimo Pokini. Our mission is to provide a temporary safe haven for companion animals in order to keep pets and their people together in times of crisis, increase pet retention, and decrease the number of animals entering the shelter system. We provide all of these services free of charge to our clients. 

In 2022, Ruff Haven received special recognition for its work. Ruff Haven was one of four Utah nonprofit organizations recognized in the inaugural Spirit of Service Awards. The goal of the Governor’s Spirit of Service Award is to recognize individuals and groups who are making a difference in our community through acts of service. 

In addition, Ruff Haven was named the 2022 Salt City Best Gold Winner for Best Nonprofit. This honor is part of Salt Lake Tribune’s annual awards to discover and celebrate the best businesses, people, and places in Salt Lake City, voted on by their readers.

How did Ruff Haven Start? What Are The Challenges Encountered Along The Way?

My fellow co-founders and I had all been involved with animal welfare and advocacy projects in the past, which drew us to each other. Specifically, we had each volunteered and worked with pet owners who were experiencing poverty and homelessness. As co-founders, we saw there was a need that wasn’t being addressed in our community: when crisis situations surfaced, many pet families were either surrendering their pets, or forgoing the help and resources they needed to survive and thrive. One of our co-founders owns a dog boarding facility, which we use to shelter pets for a temporary time while their family gets through a crisis. Early on, we only had the capacity to shelter 10 dogs, with no place for cats. So we had to create a cat room in the facility, and over time, we were able to dedicate more space to allow more animals – both dogs and cats – in our care. 

Tell Us About The Most “Unusual” Animal That Ruff Haven Has Ever Taken.

Our emergency pet sheltering program only accepts cats and dogs. We are able to shelter or foster them for up to 60-90 days.

Tell Us More About Your Events

We have done a variety of fundraising, which includes Bingo, dog fashion shows, corporate sponsorships, Facebook fundraisers, and grant writing. We also are known for a big annual fundraising event, our Ruff Haven Birthday Bash, where we provide entertainment, games, a silent auction, and other fun activities.

Tell Us More About The Most Rewarding Part Of Running An Animal Shelter

The most rewarding part of running our emergency pet sheltering program is when we get to reunify pets with their owners at the end of their stay. In 2022, Ruff Haven accepted 101 cats and 220 dogs into the program, helping 228 families experiencing a crisis. Crisis situations include domestic violence, housing insecurity, hospitalization, substance use treatment, natural disasters, incarceration, and others. 

What Do You Think Might Be The Greatest Challenge Of Running An Animal Shelter?

At any given moment, we are sheltering/foster sitting 70+ animals at a time, and working with people in high-stress situations. There is a lot of work that goes into managing our sheltering program, including daily care (feeding, cleaning, exercising, enrichment), and we rely on our volunteers to fill in where needed. 

Tell Us More About The Volunteers In Freed Spirits Animal Rescue

Besides our co-founders, we have some amazing volunteers! Some volunteers have come to us because they appreciate our mission, and other volunteers are recipients of our services and have decided to “give back” through their service. One of our volunteer board members utilized our pet sheltering program for her cats when she escaped a domestic violence situation. We are grateful to have her on the board because she brings a unique, lived experience and has valuable feedback to share with the team. 

Where Do Most Of The Animals In Your Shelter Come From, And What Is The Process For Rescuing And Rehabilitating Them?

We are not a traditional shelter since all of the pets in our care already have families. The vast majority (69%) of pets are there because of housing insecurity. Other top categories are hospitalization (28%) and domestic violence (23%). We require an application to be considered for our pet sheltering program, and pet owners must agree to a weekly check-in so that all parties can remain on track. Spay and neutering is also a requirement for the pet sheltering program, a service we provide for free if needed. We also provide vaccinations, microchips, and medical care as needed. 

What Are The Busiest Periods And How Does Ruff Haven Cope?

We are consistently busy, no matter what time of year!

Why Does Your Shelter Focus On A Specific Breed Or Type Of Animal (If So), And What Are The Unique Challenges And Rewards Of Working With Them?

Ruff Haven does not focus on specific breeds. However, we will not accept aggressive animals into the program. 

How Does Your Shelter Collaborate With Other Organizations And Agencies In The Community, And What Impact Has That Had On The Animals And People It Serves?

Ruff Haven values our partnerships with both animal and human welfare agencies because we find these partnerships to be mutually beneficial. In one example, the Humane Society of Utah will often refer pet owners to us if they are experiencing a crisis. In return, they have provided spay and neuter services for our clients. Many human services organizations, such as homeless resource centers, addiction treatment centers, domestic violence shelters, and mental health agencies, work closely with us to refer their clients to us so that their clients can get the attention and resources they need. 

Are There Any Upcoming Events Or Campaigns That The Community Can Participate In To Support The Shelter’s Mission?

We have a fundraising event on April 30, 2023, and our annual Birthday Bash event on June 17, 2023. We also love it when we see people creating birthday fundraisers on Facebook for us! People are always welcome to visit www.ruffhaven.org/donate if they’d like to become a donor and supporter.

Are There Any Programs Or Services That Your Shelter Offers That Set It Apart From Other Animal Shelters?

Because our focus is on pet retention, we have many programs that differ from a traditional shelter or rescue. Here are a few:

We launched a free private re-homing site on our webpage. Community pet families now have the option to find their pets their next loving family, without resorting to using unmonitored classifieds or social media methods. This keeps animals out of the shelter and allows families to be part of the solution to an overburdened animal welfare system.

Ruff Haven became an official Kayak Court partner. Ruff Haven joined Salt Lake City Justice Court’s unique Kayak Court program, which brings the court to the banks of the Jordan River. Ruff Haven’s executive director is a licensed social worker and participates in that capacity on the river, offering resources to unsheltered community members, while additional RH team members provide vaccines and other resources along the trail.

We partnered with Salt Lake County Animal Services to provide pet licenses. This unique program allows us to be the only organization other than Salt Lake County Animal Services to be able to issue licenses to our unsheltered pet families directly. This frees up the valuable time of the Animal Control Officers, as well as prevents our clients from paying expensive licensing or impound fees.

In partnership with the Humane Society of Utah, Ruff Haven helped pass HB 175, sponsored by Representative Angela Romero, allowing pets and companion animals to be included in domestic violence orders. Utah is now the 38th state in the country to have this lifesaving legislation.

We provide free pet vaccine clinics every quarter in some of the most underserved communities in Utah. In 2022, we vaccinated 777 pets through our clinics, as well as provided pet food and microchips.

On a monthly basis, Ruff Haven’s leadership team and volunteer veterinarian visit the homeless encampments in the Salt Lake City area to provide wellness checks, pet vaccinations, microchips, and pet food as needed. In 2023, we serviced 243 pets in the unsheltered community.

In November 2022, we launched our first completely free pet pantry using DoorDash and their delivery drivers. We provide food to an average of 150 animals a week within a 10-mile radius of our facility. We do not have any income requirements or additional barriers to prove the need.

Last year, 38 animals were kept with their families through pet deposit or license/impound assistance, paid by Ruff Haven. 

In 2022, Ruff Haven groomed 57 dogs (and one cat!) for pet families who otherwise couldn’t afford this service.

Ruff Haven partnered with Salt Lake County Animal Services to provide their animal control officers with free fence fix-it kits for owners who may be struggling to keep their dogs contained in their yards. One of the most frequent ways dogs end up in the local municipal shelter is due to a hole in the fence. This small effort will divert many dogs from entering the shelter at all, staying with their family.

Ruff Haven stocks two food pantries with pet food for families in need. One is at the Weigand Center (a homeless resource center), and the other is in Tooele, Utah, where pet resources are scarce. 

How Has Ruff Haven Adapted To The Challenges Presented By The Pandemic?

Ruff Haven Crisis Sheltering started in June 2020, and the need for our service was immediate since many pet families started to experience job loss and housing insecurity. We also started our quarterly free pet vaccination clinics as a direct response to the pandemic since many veterinary offices closed and there was a lack of vaccination supply, heightening the need for these services. Our pet vaccination clinics are all done on a drive-through format, which means the pet owner doesn’t leave their vehicle. This model was born because of the pandemic, and we continue this format because we’ve found it to be very efficient. 

Share With Us Some Of The Heartwarming Stories Of Animals Rehabilitated And Rehomed By Ruff Haven.

In animal welfare heroes take many forms. They are shelter workers, rescuers, transporters, veterinarians, and so many more fantastic people. We also believe our clients are heroes. Many of them choose living in a car or on the streets before giving up their beloved pets. And some, like Shane, literally would have died before relinquishing his cat Littlefoot. They have been by each other’s side for eight years.

Shane had a very significant head injury that needed lengthy medical treatment and recovery. He repeatedly put off getting care because he had no one to look after Littlefoot. His hospital case manager heard of Ruff Haven and we were happy to be a small part of his journey to recovery. Littlefoot and Shane quickly became some of our favorite clients.

While in the rehabilitation center, Shane was able to have Littlefoot certified as an emotional support animal. And after 10 long weeks, they were finally reunited. Shane said he was so excited he couldn’t sleep! During our weekly phone calls Shane could not stop gushing about what an amazing cat he had. There is no one in this world who would love Littlefoot more than his dad. Shane is just one of our heroes. 

And here is an excerpt from an article about Steve, who utilized Ruff Haven’s sheltering program to seek out substance use treatment (Partnership gets people substance use treatment & care for their pets | KUTV):

Steve Flores recently got out of residential treatment with Odyssey House and is reuniting with his cat, Gilly. He adopted the two-year-old cat just a few months before he decided to get treatment for alcohol use.”Came to a point where I couldn’t function without it,” Flores said.

Because Odyssey can’t take in pets, he would have to leave Gilly behind to get sober. “I was kind of stuck between a hard place and a rock,” he said. But he was able to find Ruff Haven to take Gilly in, so he didn’t have to worry about his new friend. Having frequent check ins and updates helps Flores stay at ease during his treatment. “I was excited the whole way here,” Flores said about his reunion with Gilly at Ruff Haven.

He’s ready for his fresh start in life on the path to recovery with Gilly at his side.

“I feel great, really great,” Flores said. “I mean, just got to keep the ball rolling and keep progressing.”

Christina left an abusive marriage and needed a safe place for her, her daughter, and their two dogs, Luna and Zelda, to stay. She was able to find temporary housing at a local resource center but was unable to have her dogs with them. They accessed our temporary sheltering program while Christina started rebuilding her life. 

Christina was able to obtain two jobs to support her family and moved from one of the homeless resource centers to the YWCA. She was able to have Luna and Zelda there, but they could not be left alone. She used our day camp services while she was at work. Her girls are so well behaved and they were a delight to have in our open play groups. 

Christina and her daughter were able to obtain a housing voucher and began applying for apartments. She had a 20-year-old felony conviction on her background, proving to be a substantial barrier. She was required to pay an application fee at every apartment, just to be denied. She finally found an apartment she was told she would qualify for but did not have the $40 application fee. Ruff Haven paid the application fee, and she was approved!

Christina, Luna, and Zelda have been reunited and her experience, tenacity, and dedication led us to create an application fee/pet deposit fund for clients in need. 

What Are The Help Needed From The Local Community?

Ruff Haven relies on our volunteers to support and fulfill our mission. As we expand our programming, we have opportunities for volunteers to serve in a number of capacities. A huge need is for foster sitters. Foster sitting allows Ruff Haven to increase the number of pets – and, therefore, families – needing our services.

We also rely on donations to cover operating and programming costs, which include our medical fund and our emergency sheltering program. 

Connect With Ruff Haven here:

Address: Salt Lake City, UT.

Phone: 801-251-6765

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Wondrousdrifter.com is thankful to Ruff Haven for the interview.

Check out this page for the list of animal shelters in Salt Lake City, Utah.

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