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Frequently
Asked Questions Click
on the question and the page will scroll to that question's answer. Adopting
a Pet Where
are photos of all the current dogs and cats available for adoption? I
want Assisi to call me when a particular dog or cat that I am looking for (breed,
age, color) comes in to the shelter. What
is your armchair adoption program? Is
there an adoption fee to adopt a cat or dog? Giving
Up a Pet We
have a dog or cat that we need to give to the shelter, how do we do that? General
Info What
are your shelter hours and street address? I
called the shelter and did not get a call back right away, why? I'd
like to fax you something, what is your fax number? Pet
Assisted Therapy I
would like to bring my cat/dog to visit the elderly as part of your pet assisted
therapy program. Newsletter Why
don't you put your current regular newsletter on this Web site? About
the AAF Does
the Assisi Animal Foundation and Shelter have a formal mission statement? Who
are the Assisi people? Is
the AAF affiliated with any local business organizations? Who
redesigned the website? Volunteering I
want to volunteer to help the Assisi animals. How do I go about it? What
are the duties of a volunteer at the shelter? Donations I'd
like to make a donation, how may I? Trips
to Africa I'm
very interested in going to Africa with you folks this summer for two to four
weeks. Other
Questions What
are these banners and logos doing on the Assisi Home Page? I
want to start my own shelter, like yours, how do I do it? Adopting
a Pet Where
are photos of all the current dogs and cats available for adoption? We have
all the available dogs and cats, with photos, on the Web site connected to our
internal "animal management database." Click here
to check out our real-time internal Assisi database. This service, and much of
the labor and some equipment, is donated to us by AnimalShelterNet.Com.
Assisi is very grateful to them for their generous and cheerful assistance. back
to top
I want Assisi to call me when a particular dog or cat that I am looking for (breed,
age, color) comes in to the shelter. Our internal "animal management
database" will have this automated feature in the future. In the past, trying
to meet these requests has led to considerable time spent in finding changed e-mail
addresses, phones no longer operating, changed minds, et cetera. Unfortunately,
the AAF simply does not currently have the volunteer staff and time to devote
to this activity. back to top What
is your armchair adoption program? Many people want to adopt a dog or cat
but cannot keep one at their home. So, instead they can "armchair adopt"
the pets of their choice. The animal stays at the shelter and writes to the adopter
with letters and photos (with a little help from the humans of course). The fee
for this is only fifteen dollars a month ($185 a year). In the event their pet
is adopted to a qualified home another pet will be made available. E-mail
us to get started. back to top Is
there an adoption fee to adopt a cat or dog? Yes there is. This varies and
will be discussed during the shelter visit or initial phone call (815-455-9411).
The fee is reasonable and helps us defray some of the expenses of the dog or cat.
Animals for adoption are spayed or neutered, have appropriate shots and have been
examined by our veterinarian. Details of the medical history of any dog or cat
will available during the adoption process. back to top Giving
Up a Pet We
have a dog or cat that we need to give to the shelter, how do we do that?
You must call the shelter first to see if space is available. If there is no available
space at that time, you may give us all the information about the animal. Then,
when and if space becomes available and we can help you, then we will get back
to you via phone. Usually, animal emergencies carry priority. Space here is made
available by adoption of current residents. Arrangements for incoming animals
are not made using e-mail only. Related topics: telephoning
the shelter. back to top General
Info What
are your shelter hours and street address? We maintain regular business hours
from 9-5 Monday through Friday, and until 2 on weekends. On major holidays, our
hours differ, giving our small staff and willing volunteers a chance to enjoy
some of the day themselves with family after basic care is given to our animal
residents. We
do not post the exact location of the shelter in an attempt to avoid impulse abandonment
of animals. We have learned that often a pet owner, annoyed by some behavior or
problem, wants to immediately abandon the pet at a shelter. We have also learned
that in such a situation, sometimes simple phone advice or counseling will give
the animal a second and successful chance at living in its current home. Further,
as much as we want to, it is impossible for us, or any other organization, to
serve every single case we encounter, particularly now with the added source of
requests via e-mail. Unfortunately,
our space and resources are not infinite. We operate on an appointment basis,
to be sure that someone knowledgeable about the animals is on hand to serve adopters
or visitors. back to top I
called the shelter and did not get a call back right away, why? We are
still a small organization, therefore our office staff is small as well, as is
our regular volunteer pool. Volunteers are often people with career and family
demands, giving willingly of spare time which is appreciated. We often get an
overwhelming number of calls a day on two phone lines
and a separate fax which would require a full time person to handle, but we prefer
that your donations go more directly to the animals' care and services. We don't
like voice mail any more than most, but it is a necessary and often helpful tool
here and most everywhere today . Our voice mail asks that a detailed message is
left as to the nature of the call with a day phone. If we are in a position
to assist, we will get back to the caller usually within a day or two. If
you don't get a callback and still need a response, please e-mail
us. Please keep in mind that we are a hardworking grassroots organization
with finite human resources and financial resources. We do sincerely try our best…
for the animals. Most people understand. back to top I'd
like to fax you something, what is your fax number? Our fax number is (815)
455 9417. To help control costs, if your unsolicited material is more than two
pages, please consider "Snail mail" to the AAF, PO Box 143, Crystal
Lake, Illinois 60039-0143 or e-mail
it to us if that is possible. Attachments must be limited to 500 KB or the
e-mail will be rejected by our servers. Please send the e-mail only once. back
to top Pet
Assisted Therapy I
would like to bring my cat/dog to visit the elderly as part of your pet assisted
therapy program. We appreciate
your interest in assisting us with the pet therapy program, however, Assisi uses
only dogs and cats from our shelter for pet therapy visits. Back
to top. Newsletter Why
don't you put your current regular newsletter on this Web site? The length
of the newsletter, graphics, et cetera. reportedly can be slow loading, cause
lockups, run into memory difficulties, et cetera. Much e-mail time has been spent
getting people through these problems when possible. We hope someday, that time,
our staff size and technology will change this, but for now, it seems best for
all involved to simply mail out a current newsletter as a sample when it is requested.
If you'd like one, e-mail us your regular mailing
address and we'll be glad to pop one in the mail to you with no obligation…
and NO, we do not sell or give out our mailing information. To
receive the regular five yearly issues of the 16 page newsletters, please become
a member. Unfortunately with escalating postal material and service costs, we
can not absorb this without support. back
to top About
the AAF Does
the Assisi Animal Foundation and Shelter have a formal mission statement?
Yes, click on this link to read the Assisi Animal Foundation
and Shelter Mission Statement. back to top Who
are the Assisi people? We are you. We are different ages, different backgrounds,
different skills, careers and personal lives. But we are all alike in one binding,
unifying way… we all believe animals are sentient, intelligent creatures
that should not suffer for man's cruelty, sport, vanity, habit or gain. We work
together to lessen what suffering we can, and improve what life we can. We believe
that in our effort we can truly say, "I Helped Save a Small Life Today."
back to top Is
the AAF affiliated with any local business organizations? Yes, the Assisi
Animal Foundation is a long standing and active member of the Crystal Lake Chamber
of Commerce, Crystal Lake, IL 60039. back to top Who
redesigned the website? Someone finally offered to redesign our site for free.
Sandy presented us with a great-looking set of sample pages, so she is now taking
care of the site for us. She redesigns and maintains websites for animal shelters
and businesses in her spare time. To submit your website project to Sandy for
consideration, e-mail her from the Assisi e-mail page
(using the Webmaster selection) for a prompt reply. The new site was created with
a free template available at AdesDesign.net.
We hope you like it! back to top Volunteering
I
want to volunteer to help the Assisi animals. How do I go about it? Volunteers
are a vital part of our work for the animals. They are needed and welcome. Volunteers
must be reliable and dependable. We appreciate a "let's get it done attitude."
There are multiple needs for willing hands in our shelter that include:
| -
Working directly in helping care for our four legged residents requiring keeping
their quarters clean and comfortable, feeding them, and helping to exercise them. |
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Helping in our animal assisted therapy program, visiting nursing and retirement
facilities with the AAF animals | | -
Helping raise much needed funds to operate our shelter. |
| - Helping
with our humane educational work, visiting classrooms, young peoples' groups,
and preparing material for this. | | -
Helping plan events and working them. | | -
Recruiting supporters and volunteers | | -
Providing help in our small office, answering phones, various office duties employing
computer, scanner, photographic skills etc. | | -
Graphics work designing flyers and invitations for events and happenings. |
| -
Providing donated printing costs for our newsletters. | | -
Providing donated mailing services. | | -
Providing landscape, lawn maintenance | | -
Handyperson skills for the never ending repairs and maintenance |
As Assisi has washers
and dryers in our shelter (workplace regulation classified as "machinery")
persons under 16 cannot volunteer at Assisi, even with a parent's consent or presence.
This is beyond Assisi's control. Assisi regrets this limitation. Persons
age 16-17 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian when visiting the
shelter for the first time. The parent or legal guardian must approve the minor
for volunteering. Some of our best volunteers are young people, so we invite parents
or guardians to visit our facility with them. If
you are 18 or older, you are an adult and there are no restrictions. Please
visit our Volunteers page for more info. back
to top What
are the duties of a volunteer at the shelter? Our volunteers are usually generalists,
meaning they help out with whatever needs to be done. However, if you have special
skills or a fear of dogs/cats, you may be able to concentrate your efforts in
one area. We could really use the help of someone who is familiar with computers,
digital cameras, and picture scanners. Shelter
experience is not needed. Some of the responsibilities are cleaning, feeding,
caring for the old or ill animals and so forth, so you'll probably get dirty.
Volunteers must be reliable, highly self-motivated, hard-working, and have a "let's
get it done" attitude. If
you are allergic to dogs and or cats please discuss this with us as being a no
cage shelter both cats and dogs are "everywhere" at Assisi, including
"helping" in the offices. The
rewards of helping these little ones are great. The "kids" (as we call them)
depend on the loving volunteers so very much and show their appreciation with
purrs and licks! Please visit our Volunteers page
for more info. back to top Donations I'd
like to make a donation, how may I? We take major credit cards and i-Check
instant secure donations right here at our Web site. Click
here to see how your donations help the Assisi Animal Foundation. Donations
of any amount are greatly appreciated. Donations are tax-deductible (check with
your tax advisor), as we are a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization. To
make a donation using a credit card click on the link below: 
To
make a donation using an i-check click on the link below: 
Of
course we take donations through the regular mail: Assisi
Animal Foundation P.O.
Box 143 Crystal
Lake, IL 60039-0143 back
to top Trips
to Africa I'm
very interested in going to Africa with you folks this summer for two to four
weeks. Please call or e-mail us for all the information about the trip. We
can send you more information in regular mail, so please provide your mailing
address. back to top Other
Questions What
are these banners and logos doing on the Assisi Home Page? From time to time,
we have a few banners and logos on our home page because we get free Web promotion
services from each banner provider. back to top
I
want to start my own shelter, like yours, how do I do it? First read "Our
Story", then if you feel you have the drive and determination, we recommend
you look at resources provided by the ASPCA, such as their page: Want
to Start an Animal Shelter? This is a wonderful resume of what's initially
involved from expert sources. Of course, location of your shelter will determine
much of the detail in establishing it legally, as statutes vary from state to
state, often county to county, but this is an excellent reference to get you started.
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