Animal Services Officers 'Wow!' Lynn Hale Elementary Students at College and Career Day
Animal Services Officer Annette De La Rosa was busy catching the attention of students on College and Career Day at Lynn Hale Elementary school on March 28. De La Rosa and Officer Alexandria Diaz de Leon demonstrated what a day in the life of an animal control officer is like performing their job duties and services for the community.
“We both had a lot of fun talking with the students about our jobs – it reminded me of whenever I was their age and was looking forward to career day,” said De La Rosa. “The students thought it was great how we rescue dogs and cats and make sure they get back home because they didn’t want to lose their best friend.”
De La Rosa and Diaz de Leon shared stories of the importance of teamwork in their jobs describing the rescue of a mother dog and her puppies from underneath a bridge, with the assistance of Arlington Fire Department, who had to cut up concrete to get to some of the puppies.
Diaz de Leon stated that the teachers and children were especially excited when told that it was very important to keep up with their reading and writing skills, because it is something she uses every day in her job.
“These ladies did a WONDERFUL job!” said Mallory Tate, counselor at Lynn Hale Elementary school. “All of the kiddos learned a lot and had a blast!”
A big, “Wow!” moment happened when the students learned about features of the Animal Services truck.
“The students were curious about our drop-down cage and didn’t believe that it could carry big dogs, so I sat inside of it, and officer Diaz de Leon demonstrated how it works by lifting me in it,” said De La Rosa.
“We knew that Annette getting into the lift would keep the students engaged in what we were saying instead of lifting the drop-down empty, and it really did – they went crazy!” said Diaz de Leon.
The officers educated the students in responsible pet ownership, including the importance of getting pets licensed and registered with the city. When owners license their animals and their pet is wearing its tag, it makes it easy for officers in the field to retrieve information from the tag to contact the pet’s owner and get it safely back home.
“It was nice going to speak about our careers with the students,” said Diaz de Leon. “The students kept asking about animals that we do not normally handle (like zoo animals), but once we told them about the wild animals we do encounter, like coyotes, bobcats and large birds, they seemed interested in that, too.”
Learn more about responsible pet ownership and urban wildlife by visiting the Animal Services website.
A big, “Wow!” moment happened when the students learned about features of the Animal Services truck.
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