Animal control officers are playing a much larger role today in the reduction of shelter intake by choosing to identify and return stray dogs to their families without bringing them into the shelter, but all too often officers stop looking for an owner was they find that the animal has no ID tags or microchip. This workshop highlights successful efforts from agencies across the country that have shown to significantly increase the field RTO rate for those animals without obvious identification.
This webinar has been certified by the National Animal Care & Control Association and is approved for 1 Continuing Education Unit.
Presenters:
Nick Walton is the National Shelter Support Manager for Best Friends Animal Society, providing leadership and training for strategic shelter partners across the country. Through Best Friends’ national shelter support program, Nick conducts professional shelter operations and field assessments, and leads progressive, humane trainings for animal control agencies and officers.
Prior to joining Best Friends and serving as the behavior and training coordinator for the Best Friends Lifesaving Center in Atlanta, Nick spent several years working as an animal control officer for Fulton County Animal Services through LifeLine Animal Project. Through this work, he served as Fulton County’s primary field training officer, providing professional training and development to new officers and cultivating a community-oriented approach to animal services in order to help Atlanta become a no-kill city.
Nick’s many years of experience as a dog trainer and behavior specialist combined with his commitment to keeping pets safe at home through proactive neighborhood engagement have resulted in a deep expertise in and love for community-based lifesaving. Once known around town as “the Dog Food Man,” he has a reputation for building trust and key relationships with lasting positive effects for both pets and people.
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