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HIHS Field Trips

From November 2023 through March 2025, we would spend nearly every Sunday morning cleaning the kennels and feeding morning meals to the dogs at the Hawaii Island Humane Society's east Hawaii location. After our shift, we would regularly take one of the dogs for the HIHS' Field Trips for Shelter Dogs campaign. Spending time with the pups outside of their normal kennel environment served many benefits like allowing the dogs to decompress, exposing them to new things, getting to know their personalities better, and of course, creating awareness by getting their faces out into the public. In total we logged 128 hours cleaning kennels and went on 33 field trips with 24 different dogs.
Crash
01
Crash
Crash was our first field trip. A more-or-less plug-and-play dog with great manners and a happy disposition. One thing that made Crash unique was his drive to play with a ball. This drive eventually led to him being recruited for conservation work in the Pacific Northwest!
Didi
02
Didi
Meet Didi - a "dollar store golden retriever" as labeled by HIHS. She was a timid girl when we took her out for the day so we kept it low key and sat in the grass at Wailoa Park. Then we stopped for a quick visit to our good friend Larisa's house, where Didi got some extra love and attention inside of a house, which at that point, Didi may not had ever experienced before. Our relationship with Didi strengthened over time and we eventually took her in as our first foster dog.
Bluey
03
Bluey
Meet Bluey - a calm, loving dog, and one of our first field trip experiences. We kept it simple with Bluey and spent the day at the park. With a gaze like hers, she surely turned some heads and was eventually adopted.
Bonnie
04
Bonnie
Meet Bonnie - a curvy-tailed, one-ear-up-one-ear-down dog. We hung out at the park, dipped our toes in the ocean, and took her for a pup cup. She let us know she was thankful by landing some big wet licks on our cheeks on the ride home.
Aspen
05
Aspen
Meet Aspen - a lovely dog who just wanted to bond with some humans for a bit.
Buddy
06
Buddy
Meet Buddy - another of HIHS' long-stay dogs that had been in the shelter from 6 months old until he was almost 3 years old. He knew nothing of the outside world so our time with Buddy was spent going slow in most places. Our bond with him increased over time and we took him for multiple field trips, even bringing him to the mall during the holidays to see The Big Guy. Finally, we fostered Buddy after many failed attempts at his potential adoptions, and over the course of 6 weeks, we raised his confidence, increased his social awareness, and helped him find a loving home.
Max
07
Max
Meet Max - one of the HIHS long-stay dogs who was in their system for well over a year. Right after our field trip with Max he went into a foster home with our friends Mary and Nick, who cared for him for over a year until he was finally adopted.
Cherry Pie
08
Cherry Pie
Meet Cherry Pie - after our trip to the park, Cherry Pie came with us for a lunch date at the dog-friendly Booch Bar in Hilo. She was a stellar patron and didn't try to sneak any of our food, and for that, she got a nice handshake and pat on the head from Michelle.
Sirius
09
Sirius
Meet Sirius - a senior guy who really didn't care for much outside of a nice quiet comfy space to rest. Luckily, Sirius was adopted shortly after our field trip with him.
Clover
10
Clover
Meet Clover - a cute dog that's spotted like a miniature cow. She barely made a peep the whole time we were out adventuring. She really enjoyed her pup cup and new chew toy from Petco.
Brick
11
Brick
Meet Brick - built like a... brick. This fun-sized brindle boy spent the rainy day with us running some errands, checking out the coffee shop, and just hanging in the car. You can watch our whole adventure from the moment we took Brick from his kennel and got him ready to go in the office.
Hobbes
12
Hobbes
Meet Hobbes - a young dog with a beautiful coat. Our trip was short with Hobbes, but we made the most out of it at the park, giving him love and scratches until he couldn't handle it anymore.
Bandit
13
Bandit
Meet Bandit - a tiny guy with a big smile.
Cookie
14
Cookie
Meet Cookie - a beautifully spotted poi dog with exceptionally pointy ears. We took her for a short trip to the park and went for a pup cup, since it was a hot day that day.
Dottie
15
Dottie
Meet Dottie - named for obvious reasons, Dottie was a great little dog with a lot of love to give. A quick trip to the park filled with hugs and pets and then Dottie went on her merry way.
Beaker and Bunsen
16
Beaker and Bunsen
Meet Beaker and Bunsen - two tiny little guys that although look like they're related, found themselves bonded either way. They were nearly full-grown at this point believe it or not and our little trip to Wailoa Park was a their first ever outing. While the car ride there seemed to have them shaking in their little boots, they both came out of their shells once we got down to their level and offered our own version of puppy love.
Ember
17
Ember
Meet Ember - one of our favorite HIHS dogs during our time there. She was a resident at the shelter for about 2 years, but in that time we developed a very good bond. We were part of a select few people that could actually interact with Ember in a positive way and it helped her blossom. She became our most field-tripped dog, totaling 6 trips to all kinds of places! We went to the parks, Home Depot, Petco, into the ocean, to scent work class, out for a Halloween excursion, and lastly, a trip back to our house so that she could get some solid rest and decompression.
Kira
18
Kira
Meet Kira - a tripod of a dog who loved to play and chase. Having just three legs didn't slow this girl down one bit.
Lana
19
Lana
Meet Lana - an incredibly chill dog with icy blue eyes that were probably due to fire ant bites. She was an even-tempered dog who liked dipping her paws into the ocean. Sitting with her in silence at the water's edge was a magical experience. Of course, she needed a good bath at Tractor Supply on the way home after our trip.
Booker
20
Booker
Meet Booker - a dog so chill that he barely wanted to do anything but relax in the grass and get a little massage. He was great with everyone we met on our field trip that day, a real gentle giant.
Pancake
21
Pancake
Meet Pancake - a partially blind and fully deaf dog that was a fun challenge for us to accommodate. Being so used to trying words or sounds to call a dog's attention, we really had to focus on our energy and letting our leash do the talking. Tuning into how Pancake used her nose to survive, it's easy to see why she's a special dog. Her disabilities didn't make a difference to her and she was as happy as could be. She was fostered by our friends for over a year until they decided to make it official and sign the adoption paperwork, making Pancake part of their family.
Bowser
22
Bowser
Meet Bowser - a big big boy with a big head and big heart. We were the only volunteers to ever really interact with Bowser in his kennel due to his strength and energy. We were also the only ones to take him out in public. We regularly practiced playing tug with him in his kennel during our cleaning shifts, so we took the game to the park and Bowser fit right in.
Snickerdoodle
23
Snickerdoodle
Meet Snickerdoodle - another one of HIHS' long-stay dogs who struggled to be seen in her best light at the kennels. We have a soft spot for dogs that look like Snickerdoodle, so when we got to take her out on the town, it was a real treat.
Denali
24
Denali
Meet Denali - somehow he found himself as one of the HIHS longest stay dogs, clocking in at about 2 years in the shelter system. Denali was a picky guy. He even had his own food container for feeding time. But, through our time with him, we gained his trust, and we were the first (and only) non-staff members to take him on a field trip. Once we were out, Denali was a dream. So much so that we took him out 3 different times! We went to the park, saw waterfalls, visited out friend Larisa (twice!), and dressed up for the holidays. He was eventually adopted in December 2024.
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Crash
Crash was our first field trip. A more-or-less plug-and-play dog with great manners and a happy disposition. One thing that made Crash unique was his drive to play with a ball. This drive eventually led to him being recruited for conservation work in the Pacific Northwest!
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