Frequently Asked Questions

Click on the question and the page will scroll to that question's answer.

Adopting a Pet

Where are photos of all the current dogs and cats available for adoption?

I want Assisi to call me when a particular dog or cat that I am looking for (breed, age, color) comes in to the shelter.

What is your armchair adoption program?

Is there an adoption fee to adopt a cat or dog?

Giving Up a Pet

We have a dog or cat that we need to give to the shelter, how do we do that?

General Info

What are your shelter hours and street address?

I called the shelter and did not get a call back right away, why?

I'd like to fax you something, what is your fax number?

Pet Assisted Therapy

I would like to bring my cat/dog to visit the elderly as part of your pet assisted therapy program.

Newsletter

Why don't you put your current regular newsletter on this Web site?

About the AAF

Does the Assisi Animal Foundation and Shelter have a formal mission statement?

Who are the Assisi people?

Is the AAF affiliated with any local business organizations?

Who redesigned the website?

Volunteering

I want to volunteer to help the Assisi animals. How do I go about it?

What are the duties of a volunteer at the shelter?

Donations

I'd like to make a donation, how may I?

Trips to Africa

I'm very interested in going to Africa with you folks this summer for two to four weeks.

Other Questions

What are these banners and logos doing on the Assisi Home Page?

I want to start my own shelter, like yours, how do I do it?

Adopting a Pet

Where are photos of all the current dogs and cats available for adoption? We have all the available dogs and cats, with photos, on the Web site connected to our internal "animal management database." Click here to check out our real-time internal Assisi database. This service, and much of the labor and some equipment, is donated to us by AnimalShelterNet.Com. Assisi is very grateful to them for their generous and cheerful assistance. back to top

I want Assisi to call me when a particular dog or cat that I am looking for (breed, age, color) comes in to the shelter. Our internal "animal management database" will have this automated feature in the future. In the past, trying to meet these requests has led to considerable time spent in finding changed e-mail addresses, phones no longer operating, changed minds, et cetera. Unfortunately, the AAF simply does not currently have the volunteer staff and time to devote to this activity. back to top

What is your armchair adoption program? Many people want to adopt a dog or cat but cannot keep one at their home. So, instead they can "armchair adopt" the pets of their choice. The animal stays at the shelter and writes to the adopter with letters and photos (with a little help from the humans of course). The fee for this is only fifteen dollars a month ($185 a year). In the event their pet is adopted to a qualified home another pet will be made available. E-mail us to get started. back to top

Is there an adoption fee to adopt a cat or dog? Yes there is. This varies and will be discussed during the shelter visit or initial phone call (815-455-9411). The fee is reasonable and helps us defray some of the expenses of the dog or cat. Animals for adoption are spayed or neutered, have appropriate shots and have been examined by our veterinarian. Details of the medical history of any dog or cat will available during the adoption process. back to top

Giving Up a Pet

We have a dog or cat that we need to give to the shelter, how do we do that? You must call the shelter first to see if space is available. If there is no available space at that time, you may give us all the information about the animal. Then, when and if space becomes available and we can help you, then we will get back to you via phone. Usually, animal emergencies carry priority. Space here is made available by adoption of current residents. Arrangements for incoming animals are not made using e-mail only. Related topics: telephoning the shelter. back to top

General Info

What are your shelter hours and street address? We maintain regular business hours from 9-5 Monday through Friday, and until 2 on weekends. On major holidays, our hours differ, giving our small staff and willing volunteers a chance to enjoy some of the day themselves with family after basic care is given to our animal residents.

We do not post the exact location of the shelter in an attempt to avoid impulse abandonment of animals. We have learned that often a pet owner, annoyed by some behavior or problem, wants to immediately abandon the pet at a shelter. We have also learned that in such a situation, sometimes simple phone advice or counseling will give the animal a second and successful chance at living in its current home. Further, as much as we want to, it is impossible for us, or any other organization, to serve every single case we encounter, particularly now with the added source of requests via e-mail.

Unfortunately, our space and resources are not infinite. We operate on an appointment basis, to be sure that someone knowledgeable about the animals is on hand to serve adopters or visitors. back to top

I called the shelter and did not get a call back right away, why? We are still a small organization, therefore our office staff is small as well, as is our regular volunteer pool. Volunteers are often people with career and family demands, giving willingly of spare time which is appreciated. We often get an overwhelming number of calls a day on two phone lines and a separate fax which would require a full time person to handle, but we prefer that your donations go more directly to the animals' care and services. We don't like voice mail any more than most, but it is a necessary and often helpful tool here and most everywhere today . Our voice mail asks that a detailed message is left as to the nature of the call with a day phone. If we are in a position to assist, we will get back to the caller usually within a day or two. If you don't get a callback and still need a response, please e-mail us. Please keep in mind that we are a hardworking grassroots organization with finite human resources and financial resources. We do sincerely try our best… for the animals. Most people understand. back to top

I'd like to fax you something, what is your fax number? Our fax number is (815) 455 9417. To help control costs, if your unsolicited material is more than two pages, please consider "Snail mail" to the AAF, PO Box 143, Crystal Lake, Illinois 60039-0143 or e-mail it to us if that is possible. Attachments must be limited to 500 KB or the e-mail will be rejected by our servers. Please send the e-mail only once. back to top

Pet Assisted Therapy

I would like to bring my cat/dog to visit the elderly as part of your pet assisted therapy program. We appreciate your interest in assisting us with the pet therapy program, however, Assisi uses only dogs and cats from our shelter for pet therapy visits. Back to top.

Newsletter

Why don't you put your current regular newsletter on this Web site? The length of the newsletter, graphics, et cetera. reportedly can be slow loading, cause lockups, run into memory difficulties, et cetera. Much e-mail time has been spent getting people through these problems when possible. We hope someday, that time, our staff size and technology will change this, but for now, it seems best for all involved to simply mail out a current newsletter as a sample when it is requested. If you'd like one, e-mail us your regular mailing address and we'll be glad to pop one in the mail to you with no obligation… and NO, we do not sell or give out our mailing information.

To receive the regular five yearly issues of the 16 page newsletters, please become a member. Unfortunately with escalating postal material and service costs, we can not absorb this without support. back to top

About the AAF

Does the Assisi Animal Foundation and Shelter have a formal mission statement? Yes, click on this link to read the Assisi Animal Foundation and Shelter Mission Statement.  back to top

Who are the Assisi people? We are you. We are different ages, different backgrounds, different skills, careers and personal lives. But we are all alike in one binding, unifying way… we all believe animals are sentient, intelligent creatures that should not suffer for man's cruelty, sport, vanity, habit or gain. We work together to lessen what suffering we can, and improve what life we can. We believe that in our effort we can truly say, "I Helped Save a Small Life Today." back to top

Is the AAF affiliated with any local business organizations? Yes, the Assisi Animal Foundation is a long standing and active member of the Crystal Lake Chamber of Commerce, Crystal Lake, IL 60039. back to top

Who redesigned the website? Someone finally offered to redesign our site for free. Sandy presented us with a great-looking set of sample pages, so she is now taking care of the site for us. She redesigns and maintains websites for animal shelters and businesses in her spare time. To submit your website project to Sandy for consideration, e-mail her from the Assisi e-mail page (using the Webmaster selection) for a prompt reply. The new site was created with a free template available at AdesDesign.net. We hope you like it! back to top

Volunteering

I want to volunteer to help the Assisi animals. How do I go about it? Volunteers are a vital part of our work for the animals. They are needed and welcome. Volunteers must be reliable and dependable. We appreciate a "let's get it done attitude." There are multiple needs for willing hands in our shelter that include:

As Assisi has washers and dryers in our shelter (workplace regulation classified as "machinery") persons under 16 cannot volunteer at Assisi, even with a parent's consent or presence. This is beyond Assisi's control. Assisi regrets this limitation.

Persons age 16-17 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian when visiting the shelter for the first time. The parent or legal guardian must approve the minor for volunteering. Some of our best volunteers are young people, so we invite parents or guardians to visit our facility with them.

If you are 18 or older, you are an adult and there are no restrictions.

Please visit our Volunteers page for more info. back to top

What are the duties of a volunteer at the shelter? Our volunteers are usually generalists, meaning they help out with whatever needs to be done. However, if you have special skills or a fear of dogs/cats, you may be able to concentrate your efforts in one area. We could really use the help of someone who is familiar with computers, digital cameras, and picture scanners.

Shelter experience is not needed. Some of the responsibilities are cleaning, feeding, caring for the old or ill animals and so forth, so you'll probably get dirty. Volunteers must be reliable, highly self-motivated, hard-working, and have a "let's get it done" attitude.

If you are allergic to dogs and or cats please discuss this with us as being a no cage shelter both cats and dogs are "everywhere" at Assisi, including "helping" in the offices.

The rewards of helping these little ones are great. The "kids" (as we call them) depend on the loving volunteers so very much and show their appreciation with purrs and licks! Please visit our Volunteers page for more info. back to top

Donations

I'd like to make a donation, how may I? We take major credit cards and i-Check instant secure donations right here at our Web site. Click here to see how your donations help the Assisi Animal Foundation. Donations of any amount are greatly appreciated. Donations are tax-deductible (check with your tax advisor), as we are a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization.

To make a donation using a credit card click on the link below:

To make a donation using an i-check click on the link below:

Of course we take donations through the regular mail:

Assisi Animal Foundation

P.O. Box 143

Crystal Lake, IL 60039-0143

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Trips to Africa

I'm very interested in going to Africa with you folks this summer for two to four weeks. Please call or e-mail us for all the information about the trip. We can send you more information in regular mail, so please provide your mailing address. back to top

Other Questions

What are these banners and logos doing on the Assisi Home Page? From time to time, we have a few banners and logos on our home page because we get free Web promotion services from each banner provider. back to top

I want to start my own shelter, like yours, how do I do it? First read "Our Story", then if you feel you have the drive and determination, we recommend you look at resources provided by the ASPCA, such as their page: Want to Start an Animal Shelter? This is a wonderful resume of what's initially involved from expert sources. Of course, location of your shelter will determine much of the detail in establishing it legally, as statutes vary from state to state, often county to county, but this is an excellent reference to get you started. back to top