Partnership Spotlight: Tools That Keep Us Safe in Shelters

Humane Innovations

Throughout her time working in animal welfare, Laurie has met a lot of great people. From shelter staff to animal advocates, the animal welfare industry is full of kind, altruistic people who care deeply about improving animals’ lives. John Peaveler, owner and principal consultant of Humane Innovations, is possibly the best personification of these virtues.

The first time Laurie met John, he was manning the Humane Innovations booth at an animal welfare conference. “She came up to my booth… and we hit it off like we’d been friends our whole lives,” John reflected in an interview with Shelter Behavior Integrations. “Laurie is the real deal; an expert with great character. She cares deeply about the people and animals she works with and she brings real solutions to problems that shelters everywhere deal with day in and day out.”

Since that conference, John has become a dear friend and a valuable partner in Laurie’s mission toward more humane shelters. Let’s take a moment to learn a bit about Humane Innovations and how they might help at your shelter.

Who is Humane Innovations?

In order to learn about Humane Innovations, you first have to know about John Peaveler. John’s animal welfare career began in 2004 Kuwait, where he spent eleven years establishing the first animal shelter and animal control program in the region, building programs, responding to international disasters, and revolutionizing animal capture techniques for the Middle East.

According to John, Humane Innovations’s first spark began in South Korea, where he was working to close down dog meat farms. “I decided I wanted a better leash than what the industry could provide,” John said, reflecting on the difficult nature of handling severely under-socialized dogs coming out of the meat farms. “I spent countless hours learning about materials and manufacturing processes… We focused on the least amount of restraint possible: hands and leashes. A leash needs to be versatile, functional, and durable. Eventually I thought I had the perfect leash, and the market agreed. We were selling hundreds a year before we even started doing any marketing.”

Eventually, that spark grew into the flame that is Humane Innovations. Today, they’re blazing a trail through the animal welfare industry with their revolutionary equipment, world-class training, and individualized consulting.

What Equipment Should Shelters Be Prioritizing?

In our interview with John, the subject inevitably turned to equipment. More specifically, we wanted to know which pieces of Humane Innovations equipment would most benefit animal shelters. John recommended several products that every shelter should prioritize, including professional leashes, muzzles, leash poles, Y-poles, handling gloves, bite pants, and dog-sized restraint modules. Above all, though, John encourages shelters to prioritize staff safety.

“When you invest in staff safety, not only do you show your staff you value them, you also protect yourself from liability. Just as importantly, when staff feel safe working with dogs, it improves their confidence and expands the realm of possibilities between friendly dogs and dangerous dogs. When we feel unsafe, we tend to default to high safety, low welfare methods of handling. When we feel safe, we can engage more to de-escalate and find less invasive off-ramps.”

This sentiment is at the heart of the partnership between Shelter Behavior Integrations and Humane Innovations. In order to improve shelter animal welfare, shelters must first have the resources to do so. That’s why Laurie has prioritized working with exceptional organizations, like Humane Innovations, who strive to provide animal professionals with the resources to do their jobs well.

A Final Word About Humane Innovations

Whether you’re a large shelter with tons of resources or a small shelter still trying to get your footing, Humane Innovations has equipment and tools that can benefit you. Check out their website to browse their catalogue of products and to learn more about what they do.

While you’re at it, swing by the Shelter Behavior Integrations website, where you see what Laurie’s doing over at SBI. From educational online courses to on-site trainings, Laurie’s got everything shelter professionals need to thrive in the animal welfare field.