If you’ve ever adopted a pet from the Edmonton Humane Society then you’re already familiar with its lineups at noon, often with different people scrambling in position for the same animal. Afterward, the follow-up involves a series of phone calls and emails to co-ordinate the meet and greet and the completion of all the other steps in the process. It’s not enough to see those cute, furry faces on its adoption web page, you have to be absolutely dogged in your pursuit of the perfect pet.
Those days are now over, says society CEO Liza Sunley, as the organization launched Adōpets technology on June 1. The process of pet adoptions can now be started from the comfort of your own home, any time, 24 hours a day.
“The world is becoming increasingly digital. We wanted to make sure that we're able to keep up with that,” she said.
A scan of the animals on the website allows the user to click on their mouse, view multiple photos of each animal (and even videos), learn their stats, and work through the application process, book their own appointments, and make payments. “There's less back and forth between the team at the shelter and the potential adopter,” she said.
The end result is a much smoother process for the adopters, which in turn means an easier transition for the adoptees.
A typical month sees nearly 200 animal adoptions. Before the pandemic, adoptions could only be initiated in person at the shelter at 13620 163 St. COVID-19 forced them to institute a modified adoption process last June with requests being submitted online and the remaining steps by appointment.
These added administrative steps lengthened the process, which put a leash on the amount of work humane society staff could accomplish. Adoptions dragged on more slowly.
Adōpets is going to turn that around.
“We have lots of animals moving through on a regular basis. Anything like this that we can streamline for the users, but also for our team as well, it's really helpful. Rather than sending five emails or phone calls back and forth trying to schedule a meet and greet, we can just book it really easily, and then it gives our team a little more time to spend with the families doing the meet and greets, and helping them find the perfect pet for them,” said Sunley.
“This system is going to allow us to have the best of both worlds, where people can come in and have that experience with meeting all the animals and finding the one that's right for them, or they can express interest online, through Adōpets, and complete the process that way.”
Sunley said this new user-friendly system will also help keep people from adopting from a puppy mill or other irresponsible breeders.
