Giving Animals A Place To Play

Lynda Maselli tugs at the leash tethered to a frisky German shepherd trotting a couple of paces in front of her.

“Sit. Sit. Sit,” Maselli says firmly to the dog. “He knows how to sit.”

Eventually the dog obeys, and Maselli allows the walk to continue. The county animal shelter volunteer is headed toward an undeveloped area in the northeast corner of shelter grounds on Flora Road.

To most, the small area is just a dusty mess. But to Maselli it’s much more.

“That’s the new play area,” Maselli says enthusiastically. “Welcome to P.L.A.Y. It’s exactly as I describe it in the brochure. It’s an unsightly area of rocks, dirt and garbage.”

Maselli is leading an effort to collect money to build a fenced, grassy “Pet Lovers Activity Yard” where people can play with an animal before they decide to take it home.

“She’s got a vision for that area over there,” said Nancy Sattin, animal control director. “It’s going to be nice.”

As early as next spring, Maselli envisions children rolling in the grass with energetic puppies. She pictures adults walking a new friend.

“We can take our dogs in here,” Maselli said. “We can play ball with them. Kids can roll in the grass with them.”

The dog at the end of Maselli’s leash is anxious to continue his walk. Maselli is one of a couple of people who walk and bathe the dogs and play with the cats housed at the shelter.

Each dog gets about 10 minutes outside its kennel with Maselli. The lucky ones go to new homes before Maselli comes back the next week.

Continuing their walk on a recent sunny morning, Maselli and the dog round the corner behind the chainlink dog kennels.

“This is where I have to walk my dogs,” Maselli said. “Now they love it, but it’s not very …”

Attractive. Alluring. Appealing.

Nevertheless, the dogs enjoy it.

“When they see me with that leash and chain, the whole kennel goes wild,” Maselli said.

Maselli’s love for animals stems from her experience raising quarter horses. The retired real estate broker and grandmother of seven acquired her knowledge of dogs watching her blue heeler roam the 80 acres she shares with her husband in Otis Orchards.

Although the dog Maselli is walking is at the end of the leash, he keeps turning around and looking back at her. Maselli says that shows discipline.

She stops the dog again and checks its obedience training. She runs through some basic commands and pats him gently when he sits back on his haunches.

Part of her role is to determine which animals should be placed with families and which ones don’t do well with children, Maselli said.

“The more I know about these dogs, the easier they are to adopt out,” Maselli said. “If I have the people, I can move dogs.”

Back at the shelter’s front door, the dog tries to chase a little blonde girl. He licks the girl’s face playfully when she reaches out to pet him.

“That’s what I look for in these dogs,” Maselli said. “I think he’s been around children.”

Just as Maselli starts heading inside to get another dog, a basset hound leaves with a young woman. It’s the owner. The dog accidentally escaped while her in-laws were watching it, the woman explains.

“I’m glad because I would have had 15 people wanting that dog,” Maselli tells the woman. “Take her home and love her.”

, DataTimes MEMO: Saturday’s People is a regular Valley Voice feature profiling remarkable individuals in the Valley. If you know someone who would be a good profile subject, please call editor Mike Schmeltzer at 927-2170.

This sidebar appeared with the story: WANT TO HELP? Donations toward building a pet play area at the county animal shelter can be sent to P.L.A.Y., c/o Spokane County Animal Shelter, 2521 N. Flora Road, Spokane, WA 99216.