This is a very scary time, and I think we are all wondering how we will look back on 2020. There are so many unknowns as we navigate a new way of life, with the fortunate folks working from home while others have been or soon will be laid off, kids homeschooling, grocery store shelves barren, and no toilet paper or traffic in sight.

Many of us have loved ones that we are very concerned for; I count myself in this group and have a great deal anxiety over the safety of my immune-compromised hero-father. For those who have lost a friend or loved one to COVID-19, I can’t even imagine the pain and sadness. We have to come together to do our part to stop the spread of this virus.

I am confident that we will. You may have seen that it was a Seattle resident who today was the first to receive a trial vaccine for COVID-19; she is one of our very own fosters, volunteers and adopters, Jennifer Haller. It’s not surprising that she volunteered herself in this capacity; she is just amazing!

While so many unknowns still remain, we are now certain that dogs, cats and other domestic animals are not considered at risk for contracting or transmitting COVID-19. Here is an explanation of what this means from our friends at All the Best Pet Care.

With all of the fear and anxiety, there is a silver lining: There has been a surge in families interested in both fostering and adopting a rescue dog. This certainly can’t hurt morale! Dogs have been scientifically shown to increase oxytocin levels in humans, and we all could use a little more “love hormone” right about now! Moreover, there is no shortage of dogs in need of families, and so we are working diligently to place homeless dogs with families in Seattle.

Nevertheless, we have a moral duty to take extra precautions to ensure the health and safety of our fosters and volunteers, potential adopters, as well as society at large. As such, we are implementing the following changes.

Public Events: We are cancelling public adoption events, social meetups and fundraisers until further notice.We will continue to monitor and observe recommendations of the King County and Washington State Department of Health as well as the CDC. We will plan to resume events as soon as it is determined safe to do so.

Private Meet and Greets: Given the urgency of our work in the rescue and rehoming of a large number of homeless dogs, we will be moving forward with our mission while implementing changes to safeguard the humans connected with our organization. We will continue to schedule private meet and greets between fosters and potential adopters with the following requests:

• If you are sick, immune-compromised, or at high risk for the virus, you should not participate in a private meet and greet. 
• All parties should thoroughly wash hands prior to and after the meet and greet and avoid touching your face.
• Please be mindful of social distancing recommendations: Maintain a distance of 4-6′ from others if possible and refrain from shaking hands. 
• When possible, meet and greets should occur in an open air environment.  

How can you help at this time?

• Consider fostering or adopting with Dog Gone Seattle
• Please be patient with us and understand that we are working diligently to respond to all inquiries expediently.
• Donate food, crates, or other fostering supplies that are currently in high demand.

We are grateful for and proud of the Dog Gone Seattle community and Seattle community at large, and confident that if we all stay calm and careful, we will weather this storm, and maybe save a bunch of canine lives in the process!

If you have specific questions or concerns about this, please email me directly at jenny@doggoneseattle.org.