Every year, more than 920,000 shelter animals are euthanized. These euthanizations occur due to overcrowding in the shelters from a lack of adoption, but many efforts are being made to reduce this number. Here at PV, the newfound Animal Society Club is looking to make an impact on animal shelters locally.
In Oct. 2024, senior and aspiring veterinarian Wenjie Pan decided to create the Animal Society Club. “I’ve always loved animals and knew I wanted to be a veterinarian. During my time volunteering at animal shelters, I had a ton of fun and felt that I made a big impact. I wanted to share this experience with other kids and help them discover an interest in veterinary medicine as well, so I decided to begin the Animal Society club,” Pan said.
The primary goal of the club is to find people who are willing to adopt pets from local animal shelters. On their Instagram page (@animalsocietyclub_pvhs), the Animal Society Club has many posts that promote the adoption of specific pets from an animal shelter. They have connected many people to pets and have helped the animals find a proper home.
The club also volunteers at shelters and helps out in any way they can. Recently, they helped the Humane Society clean up and paint some of their rooms.
Senior Hashim Ahmad joined the club this year to help out. “I joined the club this year to help out my friends. I was never really interested in veterinary medicine or animals in general, but I decided to tag along on the volunteer shifts,” Ahmad stated. “Volunteering there was an eye-opening experience for me. I was able to help out the animals living in these harsh conditions and make their lives better.”
Animal Society club is not only limited to community service though, but they also provide students an opportunity to explore veterinary medicine as career paths. Members work with career coordinator Mary Johnson to help find job shadowing opportunities.
A few members of the club were recently able to shadow veterinary professionals and see a day at their office. “Seeing the impact these veterinarians had on people and their pets made me extremely excited to continue along the path of veterinary medicine,” Pan expressed.
The work of the Animal Society club has inspired many people. It continues to show how small efforts can lead to change for animals in need and the people that help them. As shelters across the country face many challenges, organizations like these remind people that, despite their small size, local organizations can contribute to national solutions.
