Shayna Rose: Puppy Love
Shayna Rose‘s (Stephanie, DAYS OF OUR LIVES) greatest love outside acting, singing and her family is, without a doubt, animals. So when she moved to Los Angeles, getting involved with The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals seemed like a natural fit.
“Growing up, we had all kinds of pets: hamsters, turtles, birds,” recounts the actress. “We had a dog in the family for 15 years, a little toy poodle named Elliot. We still have a cockatiel.”
When Rose left home she found herself pet-less for the first time in her life. “I really wanted to get a dog, but I thought, How much time am I really going to be able to devote to and be home with a dog?” explains Rose. “So instead of having one full-time, I thought, I’m going to foster dogs.” So Rose started looking up Web sites and found the SPCA. “I wanted to get involved with an animal shelter,” she says. “They have a really great training program for volunteers. I went to the SPCA in Long Beach. That’s where they do all of their long-term training. The SPCA also has the most shelters around Los Angeles. I knew that would gave me an opportunity to get dogs from many different shelters.”
Training was a lot of work, but worth it. “I learned so much about dogs, their behavior and socialization,” admits Rose, noting that there were a lot of reading and classes. “They explain the rules of the shelter. There’s also training with the dogs. You learn how to hold their leashes properly, how to walk them properly, how to teach them how to walk on their leashes properly, how to get dogs in and out of kennels. You also learn about the kind of maintenance and grooming dogs need. They teach you how to socialize the puppies, because it’s important to help them learn how to be around other animals.”
Rose has been involved with SPCA Los Angeles for two years and loves every minute of it, particularly playing mom to her foster dogs. “I’ve taken home little puppies that didn’t have their mothers and had to be bottle fed,” recounts the actress. “I’ve had special-needs dogs and older dogs that had injuries or were ill and couldn’t be in the shelter. I’ve kept them until they got adopted or recuperated from their illness or until the babies were big enough to be in the shelter.”
Her most memorable experience was caring for two pit bull pups. “They were precious,” smiles Rose. “They had been abandoned on the side of the road. I think the litter was 12. I took two home, bottle-fed them and watched them grow. They were so little; still learning how to walk and get their bearings. That was the most rewarding experience.”
Not that giving the pups up is easy. “It’s really hard,” admits Rose, who occasionally has had dogs in her care for eight months. “You have to keep that mentality of, I’m a foster parent. That’s what I signed up for. My job is to do the best I can for the time I have them and then let them go.”
Rose encourages people to get involved with the SPCA “or any charity out there. Volunteer for anything,” she urges. “For animal lovers, the SPCA is a fabulous organization.” Rose particularly recommends the foster program. “Bringing dogs to a safe, loving place, seeing them happy and enjoying life day to day is the best feeling,” notes the actress. “Dogs make you so happy.”
For more on the SPCA, visit www.spca.com.
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