Thursday!

To check out all of photos throughout the week, follow this link:  https://goo.gl/photos/CHcqNPAQ1rYhwLtF6

Wow, it certainly has been a fun, busy week at Camp Paw Paw so far! Our Thursday began with feeding two hungry feral cats, Cameron and Mr.Jingles. Over the course of the summer, especially the last few weeks, Cameron has been increasingly social with us. At the beginning of the summer he usually would run away if we walked to him, but now he meows constantly during feeding time and does not run away. Feral cats do not meow at humans unless they are becoming domesticated which seems to be the case with Cameron. Who knows maybe someday he could be adopted out to a family who could care for him, but still let him roam outside to play.

Eek Eek! Buzz Buzz! HSCC's own Joann Nichols visited us to teach us all about Bats! We learned about their anatomy, what different types of bats are, and which ones are endangered and why. After our bat lesson we played echolocation tag to demonstrate how bats send out sound waves to get around without running into things and detect flying insects they can eat such as mosquitoes. 

 Joann's second program with us was all about hedgehogs and she even brought her special friend, Rick the hedgehog, to camp to hang out with us. We learned that hedgehogs are nocturnal, they love to eat meal worms, they need occasional baths to keep them clean or oatmeal bath to help with dry skin. Do not be surprised if your camper now wants a pet hedgehog. Rick leaves quite the impression! Thank you so much Joann and Rick for waking up from your daytime slumber to see us!

Campers were then off to work in groups for the annual Camp Paw Paw Bird Nest Building Competition! There were 4 categories awarded - Most Creative, Most Realistic, The Coziest, and Most Likely to Survive a Zombie Attack. We loved seeing the campers creativity and teamwork skills put to use! Great job everyone :)

We then were treated to a special guest, Vanessa Zerillo, who taught us all about cats & how they behave. The campers then were split into small groups and presented with a cat related problem to solve and they talked together to brainstorm ideas about what the best solutions could be to help out their specific cats. Some problems included a cat who needed to lose weight and a new cat being introduced into a home that already has a cat. Some things we learned that most people may not know is that chocolate, grapes, onion, and garlic are toxic to cats, the number of litter boxes in your home should equal the number of cats you have plus 1 extra litter box, and that cat's whiskers are not like hair and do have nerves in them and therefore should never be cut off!

Reminder: Pet Share Tomorrow! Bring something animal or pet related to share with us such as a photo, something that belongs to one of your pets, or stuffed animals

Wednesday!

To check out all of photos throughout the week, follow this link: https://goo.gl/photos/CHcqNPAQ1rYhwLtF6

Wednesday started with some turtle crafts, dog Kongs, friendship bracelets, and hanging out with Carman the box turtle.

After snack and some games, we went inside the Humane Society to meet up with Erin Alamed. She explained all of the ways and reasons that animals come to the shelter to be adopted out. We then spent a whopping 45 minutes inside with the cats and smallies, learning about their stories and giving them a wonderful amount of love and attention!

Then we were off to Red Rocks Park! The 10 minute walk went by fast with all of the jokes and stories. We made our way to the picnic tables, had lunch and then played a lot of games. This included flying tree squirrel tag, clicker training, telephone, and many others! It was hot and campers were excited to go down to the water - we even got to put our feet in! We met a dog there named Jackson and the owner let us throw sticks and balls into the water for him!

We walked back to the Humane society where we had a quick snack, worked on bracelets and crafts, then went to the field to play games.

We're looking forward to our next few days with your campers!

Tuesday!

To check out all of photos throughout the week, follow this link: https://goo.gl/photos/CHcqNPAQ1rYhwLtF6

Tuesday began with a surprise visit with HSCC kittens in their play room! The kittens had just as much fun as the campers did as they enjoyed pets and showed off their climbing and jumping skills around the play room. These kittens were part of a transport from Good Karma Pet Rescue in Florida! They are now available for adoption at HSCC!

After kitten play time we met with Joann Nichols, an animal cruelty investigator and Wildlife Rehabilitator who has worked at HSCC for 14 years. Joann's first program was about the work she does investigating animal cruelty cases in Vermont. She showed us pictures of cases she worked with and some before and after pictures of animals that she helped. Then we set campers to work acting out two different scenarios where they had to role play pet owners and animal cruelty investigators. Through their role plays they demonstrated what required conditions are for any dog that is kept outside (constant access to potable water, correct shelter size, chain with a swivel in a clear area, and the dog must be up to date on vaccinations and registered with the town). 

The second program Joann did with us was about dogs in a hot car. We used stuffed dogs in the humane society car as a demonstration and the campers used a device that can read the estimated temperature inside of a vehicle from the outside. On a 70 degree day, the inside of a parked car can easily reach over 100 degrees in minutes. So never, ever leave a dog or child alone in a parked car on a warm day. And if you happen to see a dog or child in a car on a warm day and they are showing signs of distress, call the police immediately, try to open the vehicle door to get them out or if it's locked you can legally break the window to rescue an animal or child in distress.

 After Joann's visit we did our daily camp jobs of feeding the feral cats and Carman. Cameron, one of our feral cats, was eagerly awaiting his meal and we gave him some turkey and gravy wet food as a special treat. The campers checked out the feeding board which keeps track of everything all of the cats and small animals must have for their food daily. Carman snacked on fresh leafy greens and flower petals.

 Before our second guest speaker of the day we played some games together such as animals heads up guessing game and some 7 up.

Our next guest was Jill, a professional dog trainer, and her own dog Harvey. Jill and Harvey taught us about dog behavior such as what a dog does when it is on alert, nervous, scared, aggressive or happy, calm, and relaxed. We discussed the best way to approach any dog and always ask permission before touching any dog that is not yours and keep in mind the dog may not always want to be touched. We learned about clicker training and played a game where one camper at a time played a dog and we had to use our clickers or clap to try and get the camper to do what we wanted them to without saying any words. It was a lot of fun to watch and imagine what it is like to be a dog trying to understand what humans are telling them. 

Our day concluded with a talk about how to handle small animals such as rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, hedgehogs, etc. We discussed how to approach them calmly, use both hands to scoop them up, keep them close to your body, and before setting them back down, make sure all feet are on the floor. Campers acted out skits with their own stuffed smallies to show us what they had learned. 

***Reminders: Tomorrow (weather permitting) we will be walking to Red Rocks Park for lunch and will be back at the tent in time for pick up. So please be sure your camper wears comfortable walking shoes and has their lunch and water bottle as always. We will not be swimming, so campers do not need any swimsuits or towels.

Friday we will be doing a group share about pets, so campers should bring in a photo or stuffed animal to share if possible 

Day One of Fun!

To check out all of photos throughout the week, follow this link: https://goo.gl/photos/CHcqNPAQ1rYhwLtF6

Our day started off with decorating our name tags and filling dog Kongs until everyone was here. Dog kongs are filled with peanut butter and a treat and then frozen. Every night when he staff and volunteers leave, each shelter dog gets a frozen peanut butter Kong to snack on and play with until the next morning. Throughout the week, there are three things that campers will be helping the shelter with: filling dog Kongs with peanut butter, feeding the feral cats, and taking care of Carman the box turtle.

As soon as everyone was here, we went out back to learn about the feral cats and what we will be doing to help them. Cameron, one of the cats, made a guest appearance! Then we made our way back to the tent so that we could learn about Carman (the three toed box turtle with four toes!) and how we will be taking care of her. Every camper will have specific days that they will get to feed Carman and help with the feral cats, and campers can help with dog Kongs every day!

Our first guest, Erin Alamed, from HSCC can out to the dog yard to tell us all about the shelter, the volunteers, and what it takes to keep the Humane Society running smoothly every single day of the year (did you know that staff work at the shelter 365 days a year! Pups and kitties are still hungry on New Years and Forth of July!) She brought out a furry, four-legged, happy tail friend named Shelby. Shelby is one of Erin's personal pets (she also has another dog Sienna, and two cats, all of which were adopted from HSCC!).

After Erin left, we had snack, got our shirts, and took a group picture. Everyone definitely looked pretty enthused to be dressed just like their counselors for a few minutes! After the picture, we fed the feral cats and Carman then we started our tours! Campers learned about the structure of the building, got to see first hand what our MAC (morning animal care) volunteers do everyday, briefly learned about the adoption process, and got to meet all of our upstairs animals (bunnies, cats, guinea pigs, and ferrets)! Due to not only how stressed the shelter dogs can get when overstimulated with too much interaction (we don't want them to be worked up when an adopter comes to meet them!), and the range of behaviors and triggers that various shelter dogs have, we won't be playing with or taking care of them. We will however have plenty of time with our speakers and other animals!

After the tours were finished, we had a surprise animal hangout! The staff told us we could have ferret play dates! Groups of four campers at a time, got to go inside to the intake room and play with three of our ferrets!

After ferret time was over, we ate our lunch and suddenly our second speaker was here! Linden Higgins is a professor at UVM who studies arthropods (ask your camper about that one!) and taught us all about "bugs". After we talked for a while, we went around the yard and hunted some of our own bugs.

When we said goodbye to Linden, we made our way down to the pet cemetery for a scavenger hunt. We learned how to respectfully walk around the pet cemetery and appreciate all of the pets that were there. We saw a lot of fun names, and even got to learn a little bit about some of what these pets were most remembered by. Campers had a blast checking out off of the stones and names! On our walk back, we grabbed some pine cones and made pine cone bird feeders!

We're looking forward to another lovely day tomorrow!

Last Day of Camp!

Follow this link to view all of our photos from this week at camp: https://goo.gl/photos/bHB53mEnB7BVnmPS7 

This morning campers settled in with some crafts including pipe cleaner animals and friendship bracelets. We made our final batch of peanut butter kongs for the shelter dogs and fed our feral cats. Campers also made name signs for the cats and small animals in the shelter.

Our first guests were Corporal Martin & his K-9 Capone from the Burlington Police Department and Corporal Porter & hid K-9 Hachi from the Milton Police Department. They taught us about the training police dogs and handlers go through and what police dogs are trained to do which includes tracking missing people, lost objects, detecting drugs, and apprehending. We watched Hachi do a bite work demo where he was commanded to run at Corporal Martin and grab onto his arm sleeve simulating what he would need to do in a real life apprehension situation. Hachi happens to have the hardest bite of any police dog in the state! While the dogs are trained to attack if needed, they are also trained to stop biting or to even retreat back to their handler before biting. The dogs are out in the field every day with their police handlers who are also their owners. We are grateful for their visit and the protection they provide for our communities every day to keep us safe. 

After the K-9 Unit visit, our campers were treated to a surprise of play time with three kittens who arrived to HSCC this week and are available for adoption! There couldn't be a better way to end the week than being able to spend time with adorable furry friends :)

Our afternoon included a scavenger hunt in the Pet Cemetery near HSCC, freeze pops to cool off, pet share, and a trivia game about all of the information campers learned this week from our guest speakers.

We hope everyone had a great time at Camp Paw Paw! Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Thursday!

Follow this link to view all of our photos from this week at camp: https://goo.gl/photos/bHB53mEnB7BVnmPS7

Our morning began with filling peanut butter dog Kongs, decorating Carmen's habitat, hanging out with and holding Carman, and feeding feral cats.

Our first speakers were JoAnn Nichols from the Humane Society, and Kayla, a young girl who is passionate about animals and helps JoAnn with her educational visits. First we learned all about Vermont bats. We learned about the anatomy, where they live, what diseases most commonly affect them, and what we can do to support bats. We then played a few rounds of echolocation tag (one camper was blindfolded and a counselor supported them while they walked around searching for buzzing "mosquitos").

We then went back to the tent and Kayla brought out her little friend Rick. Rick is an African Pigmy Hedgehog who is just a few years old. He is incredibly socialized and was happy to climb all over the campers. We learned about how he lives and lots of fun facts about hedgehogs.

After this, we made our way down to Red Rocks Park where we had lunch and played games. We walked back just in time for our second speaker, Vanessa Zerillo. Vanessa is a long-time volunteer at the shelter and most commonly does MAC (morning animal care) in which she cleans the cat condos and other animal areas, provides them with the proper food and water, and gives the animals lots of love and attention. Vanessa taught us all about cats - why do they tackle your ankles, why aren't they using the litter box, why are they overweight? She taught us so many fun facts and helped us figure out how to solve many common problems that cat owners face.

Camp ended with Carman time and friendship bracelet lessons.

Don't forget to bring in pictures or stuffed animals for pet share tomorrow!

Day Three!

Follow this link to view all of our photos from this week at camp: https://goo.gl/photos/bHB53mEnB7BVnmPS7

This morning campers made cat toys and dog kongs. We played games in the field and then took campers in small groups to visit the shelter animals which include: kittens, cats, bunnies, guinea pigs, and ferrets.

Our morning guest was Kevin from 802 Reptiles. He brought some West African Ball Pythons and Central/South American Boa Constrictors to share with us. He also had us meet an Australian Blue Tongued Skink which is a large lizard which kind of looks like a snake with legs. Campers had the chance to hold some of the snakes too!

Our afternoon included more group games and a visit from Bug Expert Scientist Linden Higgens who taught us all about different types of insects before the campers were set loose on a bug hunt to find as many different kinds of insects as possible around our camp site. They found spiders, flies, moths, slugs, daddy long legs, beetles, and many others. 

Our day finished with games such as animal career charades, animal heads up, and time with Carman the box turtle!

Day Two!

Follow this link to view all of our photos from this week at camp: https://goo.gl/photos/bHB53mEnB7BVnmPS7

Tuesday started with morning tent activities such as making peanut butter kong treats for the shelter dogs and feeding our feral cats. Mr.Jingles and Cameron were eagerly awaiting our arrival. The campers put out fresh dry food, water, and some turkey and gravy wet cat food which the kitties thoroughly enjoyed! 

Our morning guests were 802 Disc Dogs! All of the 6 dogs we met are rescues and they showed off some really cool tricks they can do with frisbees such as catching them as they jump over their trainer or doing spins in the air. After the show campers were able to meet 2 of the dogs up close for lots of pet time. 

 After lunch campers had more time in the shelter in small groups to hang out with HSCC resident cats and small animals. A special surprise for the camp was the chance to play with three ferrets who are currently available for adoption!

Our afternoon guest was Joann Nichols who works for HSCC an animal cruelty investigator. She taught us what the state rules are for a dog's outside shelter. Dogs must have adequate food and fresh, potable water available at all times. Their chain must be a swivel chain in a clear area where they could not get snagged up on anything. The size of their space to move around in must be an appropriate size for the dog's size. The dog must be registered with the town and vaccinated. Campers acted out different situations as dog owners and animal cruelty investigators. They worked together to improve the dogs' living conditions and made sure their living spaces were the right size. Joann then showed us real pictures of animal cases she worked on in the past with cats, dogs, and farm animals. Her work ensures that animals are being treated humanely.

The second half of Joann's presentation was about dogs in a hot car. We used stuffed dog's in the humane society car as a demonstration and the campers used a device that can read the estimated temperature inside of a vehicle from the outside. On a 70 degree day, the inside of a parked car can easily reach over 100 degrees in minutes. So never, ever leave a dog or child alone in a parked car on a warm day. And if you happen to see a dog or child in a car on a warm day and they are showing signs of distress, call the police immediately, try to open the vehicle door to get them out or if it's locked you can legally break the window to rescue an animal or child in distress.

Our day concluded with some outside time with Carman our box turtle who feasted on her meal of 2 live worms today!