RIVERSIDE (CNS) – Two Riverside County Department of Animal Services volunteers each passed the 4,000-hour mark in their free service to the county, adding to a banner year for volunteerism in animal shelters countywide this year, officials said Thursday.
Joseph “Joey” Guilin of Riverside and Larry Rudolph of Jurupa Valley are the only volunteers known to have reached the milestone 4,000-hour service contribution; most Department of Animal Services volunteers max out around 1,000 hours, according to agency spokesman John Welsh.
He said the men are part of the reason the department is projected to reach a total 25,000 volunteer hours for 2024, compared to roughly 16,000 hours in 2023.
“Both men are very humble and would likely grumble at us for such a public recognition,” Volunteer Services Manager Candace Falkenstien said. “But they deserve to be honored for their dedicated service toward homeless pets.”
Guilin, a supermarket distribution worker, has only been volunteering since 2022.
“That’s what makes Joey’s feat so amazing,” Falkenstien said. “He reached 4,000 hours in a very short time.”
The marathon volunteer enjoys spending time with canines, regularly leaving his full-time job to spend hours more taking the dogs out of their cages and into the kennel run where they can play, Falkenstien said.
“Joey prefers dealing less with the public and more with our four- legged friends,” she said. “He loves hands-on work with the dogs that need socializing and human interaction to give them a chance to become more adoptable.”
Rudolph, a former Marine and installation supervisor for a security services company, has been a volunteer since 2013 and has donated his time in virtually every unpaid position within the department, including inter-shelter pet transfer transportation, front lobby check-ins and providing adoption counseling, officials said.
He has volunteered at the Western Riverside County Animal Shelter in Jurupa Valley, the San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus and the Coachella Valley Animal Campus in Thousand Palms.
“The only shelter he has not made it to is Blythe, but knowing Larry, he’ll make it out there one day, too,” Falkenstien said.
The Department of Animal Services has struggled with capacity overruns in recent years, leading to what pet advocacy groups have alleged is the highest kill rate in the nation. The Board of Supervisors in September approved a contract with Austin, Texas-based Outcomes for Pets to find ways of revamping policies and practices to save more pets’ lives and increase adoption rates.
Anyone interested in volunteering can find additional information at https://rcdas.org/.
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