Dartmouth animal shelter worker has sleepover with dog during storm

While blinding snow and wind gusts may encourage most people to stay indoors, one area of service that doesn’t stop when the weather turns poor is animal care.

“They still require meals, medication, let outs, playtime. So, we place a high value on that and we always like to make sure there’s somebody here,” said Shanda Antle, an animal shelter worker at Homeward Bound City Pound.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "They still require meals, medication, let outs, playtime. So, we place a high value on that and we always like to make sure there's somebody here," said Shanda Antle, an animal shelter worker at Homeward Bound City Pound.

Antle is so dedicated to her craft that she decided the best way to care for the animals during the blustery storm was to plan ahead for a sleepover in the shelter.

“I use the air mattress for camping so I’m comfortable on it already and Hawking, who is our adoptable dog, he ended up jumping up for a little while and decided to snuggle up, which I had no complaints,” Antle said.

Hawking was named after the late Stephen Hawking.

Antle said the name was chosen after staff discovered he was a highly-intelligent canine.

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Homeward Bound City Pound is contracted by the Halifax Regional Municipality to provide shelter and adoption services to animals in need.