Animal Behavior for Shelter Veterinarians and Staff. Группа авторов

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СКАЧАТЬ Animal‐oriented resources run by human social services programs

      5.4.3 Resources Required

      Program goals and their desired impacts must also align with available resources. Organizations must determine the necessary resources to develop and maintain planned safety net programs before moving forward. Even programs requiring few resources should be reviewed as part of this process, as numerous small programs can cumulatively drain an organization’s resources. Non‐strategic use of resources may prevent an organization from offering a service to its community that might have a greater impact. Required resources may include staff and volunteer time for operations and oversight; funding for supplies, equipment, and facilities; and space. Organizations should have a realistic and comprehensive understanding of the resources needed to effectively develop and operate any program.

      5.4.4 Strategic Decision‐Making

At this stage, having determined the unmet needs of the pet‐owning community, identified program goals and potential impacts, and made a realistic determination of the required resources to effectively develop and operate one or more safety net programs, organizations are ready to engage in a strategic decision‐making process to determine the right program, or mix of programs, to maximize their investment for optimal impact. One way to do this would be to plot potential programs in a strategic decision matrix, weighing the needs and potential impacts against the resources required. The matrix may not yield a definitive conclusion, but developing it will clarify relevant factors that need to be considered. Figure 5.2 shows an example of a strategic decision‐making matrix for one community.

Figure 5.2 Example strategic decision‐making matrix.

      5.4.5 Measuring Impact andProgram Evaluation

      It is crucial that organizations design safety net programs for their communities in a way that allows for measurable impact. Program goals and the desired impact should be specified and quantified at the beginning of program development and modified as needed during program planning and after implementation. Organizations need to decide what metrics best measure program impact and how best to collect those data. Resources should be planned to support data collection, which should happen at multiple points in the program’s lifetime. Data should be collected before the program is launched to determine a baseline, shortly after launch as a check‐in to evaluate rollout and operations, and at regular intervals thereafter to calculate metrics and determine impact. Impact metrics measure the effects of the program in terms of the program’s goals, but usage metrics are important to track as well. Usage metrics measure program use, such as number of clients (human and animal) served, number of calls to a behavior helpline, or amount of food used from a food pantry. Analyzing impact and usage metrics at regular intervals is critical to assessing success in meeting program goals and identifying issues.

      It is also helpful to gather feedback from clients and personnel to understand their experiences and perceptions of the programs as well as suggestions for improvement. Surveys, interviews, and focus groups can be used, but more informal methods are valuable sources of information too. These include comment cards and forms (physical or virtual), emails or telephone calls, casual conversations, and even social media posts by clients, all of which may provide more immediate insight into program satisfaction. Feedback from clients and related personnel can help contextualize metrics as well as provide valuable insights into the client experience.

      5.4.6 Scalability/ProgramPhase‐out

      When developing and managing safety net programs, organizations will want to consider the future of those programs. Scalability is the ability of a program to grow or contract depending on community needs and the organization’s resources. Program scalability should be considered at the beginning of a program’s life. It is unfortunate when a successful program cannot be scaled up to serve more clients due to an external restriction that was not thought of in the initial planning. On the other hand, not all programs need to grow; successful programs may serve their clients well and meet the program goals without expanding. It is important to revisit the community landscape assessment when determining scalability. Just like impact measurement, this assessment should be regularly updated to identify changes that may drive a desire for scaling a program up or down, such as a growth in pet ownership, a loss or addition of services at the organization or community, and so forth. Examining program impact and usage within the framework of the community assessment will help organizations determine how, or if, to scale their programs.

Finally, organizations need to consider the program’s end‐of‐life. Is there a natural endpoint that would dictate the closure of the program? What resources are needed to sustain the program, and what happens if those resources are not there? Again, knowing the community landscape will help an organization with these decisions. Once the decision is made to end a program, a phase‐out plan must be developed and should include how to communicate the closure to existing and past clients, how to transition those clients from the program to other services, if necessary, and how to best support those clients during the transition. Staff and volunteers, too, must be considered, as they may grapple with mixed feelings related to the program closure as well as worries about employment and volunteer opportunities. Thinking of these issues well in advance will help make the process for determining program closure clearer and ease the closure process for all involved.

5.5 Conclusions

      Safety net programs are key to supporting pet retention and the behavioral health of pets at risk of shelter relinquishment. These programs benefit animals, pet owners, organizations, and communities. Given the multitude of program options, strategic program selection is critical, including consideration of goals, impact, and available resources. Programs must be thoughtfully planned, managed, and monitored to ensure that they meet pet ownership needs in the community and evolve as community needs change. With these considerations in mind, successful safety net programs are a critical tool in fostering an accessible and equitable support system for pet owners in the community.

References

      1 American Pet Products Association. (2017). 2017–2018 APPA National Pet Owners Survey. Stamford, CT: American Pet Products Association. https://www.americanpetproducts.org/pubs_survey.asp (accessed 19 December 2019).

      2 American Veterinary Medical Association. (n.d.). US Pet Ownership and Demographics Sourcebook. Schaumburg, Illinois: American Veterinary Medical Association. https://www.avma.org/resources/pet‐owners/petcare/spaying‐and‐neutering (accessed 19 December 2019).

      3 Ascione, F.R., Weber, C.V., Thompson, T.M. et al. (2007). Battered pets and domestic violence: Animal abuse reported by women experiencing intimate violence and by nonabused women. Violence Against Women 13 (4): 354–373.

      4 Bazan, E.B. (2005, September). Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act: Legal requirements for federal and state roles in declarations СКАЧАТЬ