With the Open Arms Challenge registration just around the corner (August 23!), we want to make sure you have what you need to succeed. With six areas of focus, the possibilities are nearly endless. With these resources and the Huddles (coming in October!), we think you will be well-equipped to determine the direction your organization will go.

As a refresher, the welcoming practices are: Processes are equitable and inclusive; customer success is ensured through customer service; marketing and communications are directed towards entire community; organization embraces an open and welcoming culture; organization creates partnerships with other organizations.

We picked out a few resources to get the ideas flowing.

The Adopters Welcome manual from Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is an invaluable tool when it comes to open adoptions. “Adopters Welcome highlights an approach to adoptions that embraces community members, encourages them to adopt, and helps them and their pets succeed,” HSUS states on its website. “The approach also acknowledges the connection among all local adoption agencies and the impact adoptions, or lack of adoptions, can have on all of the animals in a community.”

If podcasts are your jam, take a listen to the Best Friends podcast. In the episode, “If ‘nobody’s perfect,’ then why do we expect all pet adopters to be?” explores the barriers that are put up to prevent adoption.

In the webcast, Overcoming Adoption Barriers: Where Marketing Meets Policy, you’ll learn about the role marketing plays in reducing barriers. Clare Callison, Maddie’s^® Director of National Pet Supply and Demand, and Caitlin Quinn, Director of Operations at HeARTs Speak lead this talk.

View all of the Open Arms Challenge resources.