Join us on March 26th for the next Maddie’s Monthly Behavior Connection call: Beyond our Safety Net: Navigating Returns, Risk and Humane Outcomes in Dog Adoptions. This session will explore the complex realities of accepting adoption returns for dogs exhibiting challenging or dangerous behavior.

While our goal is always to keep adopted animals in homes, there are times when a return is requested and the shelter environment may not be in the dog’s best interest—or safe for staff and volunteers. Guest Speaker, Stacy Price, Chief Operating Officer at One Tail at a Time, will walk through how to guide adopters through private rehoming when appropriate, the questions we ask before accepting a behaviorally complex return and how we incorporate professional assessments into our decision-making.

The session will also cover how we provide compassionate support and clear guidance when behavioral euthanasia is the most humane option. Finally, we’ll examine how to communicate transparently with staff, fosters, and volunteers while centering safety, quality of life and organizational sustainability. The webcast is from 12:00 to 12:50 PM PT / 3:00 to 3:50 PM ET.

Key Takeaways:

• Learn how to assess behavioral risk while balancing animal welfare, public safety, and staff/volunteer well-being.
• Understand how to navigate difficult conversations about return, risk, and humane euthanasia with clarity and empathy.
• Gain tools for fostering internal alignment and supporting emotionally invested team members through hard decisions.

Register today and be sure to join us on the fourth Thursday of every month as we talk about dog and cat behavior – supporting pets in our community and animal shelters. Each month, we hear from speakers about topics of interest to our group, such as behavior medications, modifying animal behavior, assessing and improving animal welfare, and how organizations successfully provide behavior support to dogs and cats. Webcasts are hosted by Board-Certified Veterinary Behaviorist, Dr. Sheila Segurson.

All recordings and resources shared during the webcast will also be available on the Maddie’s^® Monthly Behavior Connection page in Maddie’s^® Pet Forum.