Hillsborough County issued the following announcement on July 22.
Hillsborough County PRC strives to improve domestic dispositions of future pets
Many of the thousands of dogs that temporarily spend time at Hillsborough County's Pet Resource Center need socialization training before they are ready for adoption.
To address this need, the public shelter in recent years has instituted measures to encourage agreeable canine behavior. The latest innovation is the Sensory Garden where future pets can get a feel - and smell, taste, sound, and view - of what they might encounter in a typical home or backyard.
A boardwalk introduces them to the sense of walking across wooden planks. A "salad bar" garden allows dogs to nibble and sniff a variety of edible plants and herbs such as cat grass, oregano, sage, and rosemary. Pets dig, roll, and chase anoles in a large sandbox. A waterfall and shallow pool immerse them in the sound and feel of moving water. Large boulders help dogs learn to stand and sit on uneven surfaces.
A dog pauses at the edge of a waterfall and shallow pool.
Shelter staffers and visitors, meanwhile, can watch the four-legged friends frolicking from the shade of a gazebo.
Built on the site of a former parking lot, the Sensory Garden gives shelter dogs a respite from kennels where they spend much of their time. Along with daily exercise/play breaks, dogs with marginal social skills might visit a "real-life room" with the trappings of typical living quarters: furniture, rugs, wall art, lamps, dog toys, recorded music, and so forth.
Pet Resources also has expanded its pet fostering programs, launched a program that identifies "working" cats best suited to living in barns, and assembled a team of staffers that supports pet owners who otherwise might give up their dogs or cats.
The goal of all these programs is the same: Assess and encourage traits that improve the likelihood of a dog or cat being a good pet. A pet's physical health remains the shelter's priority, but increasing attention goes toward ensuring it is mentally and emotionally prepared for adoption.
Original source can be found here.
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