On Tuesday morning, March 12, nine TIAA volunteers gathered together at the Dallas SPCA center located on I-35 west of downtown. Our first order of events was to tour the large, modern facility both indoors and outdoors – even though it was a cool, rainy day. The weather was not a bother because we got close to the dog cages to see how well the pets were treated. Inside, there were dozens of cages for both dogs and cats – and even a few small mice! The SPCA even has a surgery ward and we watched as a veterinarian and his assistants treated six dogs who were not too pleased.
The animals loved us as we walked by their cage and wagged their tales (or purred) furiously. They were so anxious for us to adopt them and it broke our hearts that we could not do so. Perhaps on a return trip we will.
After the facility tour, we went to a large conference room where our SPCA host had prepared work tables filled with items to create “pup-cicles”. We mashed together dry dog food and canned dog food to fill a paper cup. After creating many dozens of cups our host wheeled the cart to fill a freezer with the treats to give to dogs later during the week. All in all, we were proud of our accomplishment and felt warmed by our tour of the adorable pets.