Girl Scouts in Minnesota have been selling cookies to raise money for a new play space for shelter dogs.
Vicki Davis, executive director of the Tri-County Humane Society in the city of St. Cloud, officially opened the new play area on Aug. 30, giving the pups at the shelter a valuable space to let off steam and run around.
Using Cookie Money
Eight Girl Scouts from Troop 636 in the neighboring city of Sauk Rapids decided that the dogs at the shelter needed a play area, and so used money from Girl Scout cookie sales to get one built – with some help from a few local companies.
“This is something we’ve wanted for years,” said Laura Lund, the shelter’s operations manager. “The dogs look better in their kennels. They come out here and get rid of some of that energy and they are more calm. And they’re just happier.”
The play area helps dogs like Penelope, who came to the shelter in mid-August. While the Pitbull mix was friendly, she had a lot of excess energy that needed releasing. When she first got to explore the play area, she christened it by peeing on the gravel, before running over an agility ramp and then playing with a ball.
A Community Effort
The girls’ troop leader, Kari Boehmer, explained that they wanted to help homeless animals: “It took these eight determined ladies, plus all of their families, friends, and many, many community members to make this happen”.
They had $2,500 in savings from cookie sales, and the shelter had some spare fencing to use. However, they needed to clear and level the land, as well as buy and install equipment and gravel. That’s where the local community was able to come together to help out – and the finished result speaks for itself.
In the past, people often believed that dogs in shelters should stay in their own kennels rather than interact, to halt the spread of infections. However, play spaces have become more popular with shelters – the dogs enjoy using them, and it’s good for their health, too.
