It was another eight jam-packed weeks of animal education and fun at the AWLA, as our popular summer camp came to a close last week! For health and safety reasons, we once again offered half-day camps this year, so we could reach as many campers while allowing room for safe physical distancing, but that didn’t decrease the animal interactions and activities each camper enjoyed. What did our campers get up to this year?
Decorating Kennels
Each week, campers learned about the different animal residents of the AWLA and helped them get some extra attention from visitors by decorating their kennels, as well as the general adoption areas. Check out some of their creative efforts!
Meeting K-9 Officers
The Alexandria Police Department relies on their dedicated K-9 Officers for a variety of jobs, and campers had the chance to meet some of the hard-working dogs and learn about how they train for such an important role.
Hands-On Pet Care Experiences
From rabbits to kittens to dogs, campers met a variety of animals during their week at the AWLA and learned more about how to care for each and every one of them, including diet, exercise, body language, training and, of course, how to be a good advocate for our animal friends.
Learning about Veterinary Medicine
Junior doctors aged 5 through 13 had the opportunity to learn a variety of veterinary skills. Our youngest campers toured our Waggin’ Wheels surgical vehicle to see where the AWLA’s veterinary staff performs surgery on all kinds of animals. Older campers had the opportunity to learn about the importance of spay and neuter surgeries from our shelter veterinarian and even practice spay procedures on plush cat toys!
And of course, a lot of fun!
Every week of summer camp was a little different, but each one offered so many opportunities to hang out with and learn about a variety of animals. Campers also enjoyed practicing hands-on animal protection from the AWLA’s Animal Services team, practiced clicker-based animal training and, of course, Friday field day.
We’re sad camp has come to a close this summer, but we’re looking forward to a variety of fall offerings for students of all ages, including our brand new Junior Volunteer program for 16- and 17-year-olds. Read more about all of our Youth Programs HERE and SIGN UP for our email list to hear about new programs as they are scheduled.
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