- April 29, 2024
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Judith Bennett, of Port Orange, volunteers every week at the Halifax Humane Society. Lilly doesn't mind. Photo by Brian McMillan
Judith Bennett, Lilly and HHS Community Outreach Director Barry Kukes. Photo by Brian McMillan
Lilly, a 37-pound pointer mix, is available for adoption.
Lilly among the large dogs who are easy to walk. Others are not able to leave their kennels for the time being.
Judith Bennett returns Lilly to her kennel after a walk.
The renovated HHS
Judith Bennett leads Lilly, a 9-year-old pointer mix, out of the Halifax Humane Society and takes her for a walk in the grassy play area on April 12. Lilly is rated 1, meaning she’s easy to walk. Others are not so cooperative and can’t leave, but that doesn’t stop Bennett: To help socialize some dogs, she sits in the kennel with them.
“I’ve always loved animals,” said Bennett, who has three cats at her Port Orange home. She walks dogs for a couple of hours every Monday at HHS and also fixes pup pops for the animals — frozen treats made of turkey, chicken broth and peanut butter.
Bennett is one of 100 regular volunteers, plus another 350 or so who occasionally donate their time at HHS, according to Volunteer Manager Zoe Beriss. In 2020, volunteers donated about 83,000 hours of time, which is almost a $1 million value. And one of the most important things volunteers do is help to socialize the animals.
“Socializing benefits the dog,” said Community Outreach Director Barry Kukes (pronounced KOO-kiss). “They could have been a stray, out on the street, wandering around, scavenging for food, scared of humans. Others are brought in here by animal control, and now we have to go through trying to socialize them. They can be very fearful, they can shut down and not want to be around people. Having them socialized — it’s a lot easier to get them adopted.”
Four behavioral specialists are on staff to help the dogs prepare for adoption, and HHS also has 12 dogs in the Prison Pups and Pals program, where inmates have a dog with them 24/7. “We see dogs that are, to be honest, crazy — they’re aggressive and mean, and when they come out (of the Prison Pups and Pals program), they’re perfect dogs," Kukes said. "They’re socialized. It’s amazing.”
To learn more about adoptions or upcoming summer camps, visit halifaxhumanesociety.org.
