Colorado Animal Welfare Conference Session
Enrichment Round Table Panel
10:45am – 12:15pm • August 26, 2024
Westminster Ballroom I and II
Shelter Operations
The enrichment panel will be a collaboration among staff at a variety of shelters discussing what forms of enrichment are used at their shelters, what they have seen work or not work, and discuss the recent changes from PACFA about enrichment requirements and how that affected their shelter and operations. Join this session to gain more ideas for enrichment for the animals in your care!
Jill Wetzel
Jill Wetzel is the animal enrichment coordinator for Dumb Friends League. She oversees all enrichment efforts within the organization and educates staff and volunteers on the importance of enrichment. She has degrees in anthropology and evolutionary biology from the University of Colorado-Boulder.
Richard Phillips
Richard Phillips began working in the animal welfare field in 1989 and has worked for nonprofit agencies and municipalities in California before moving to Colorado in 2017. He has held positions as an animal control officer, humane officer, and various supervisory/management roles. He serves on the board of directors of the Animal Welfare Association of Colorado.
Maggie McSchaefer
Maggie McSchaefer is currently the director of animal behavior and sheltering for Foothills Animal Shelter in Golden, CO. Working in animal shelters since 2007, she specializes in shelter operations with a focus on animal behavior, reducing length of stay, and the integration of those concepts across shelter processes. She has expertise in improving the emotional experience of shelter animals through agency and choice, embracing imperfection and removing adoption barriers, and believes strongly in the elevation of applied animal behavior as the science it is. McSchaefer has a particular affinity for cats and has redesigned a number of shelter cat spaces to the benefit of their residents including the Humane Society of Boulder Valley’s 2014 Cat Adoption Center remodel featured in Jackson Galaxy’s book, Catify to Satisfy. She serves on the board of the Animal Welfare Association of Colorado, is a graduate of the Karen Pryor Academy, and a certified animal welfare administrator (CAWA).
Erin Wyse
Erin Wyse has been working in animal shelters since 2008. She has filled a variety of roles from animal care, transfer/behavior/foster program coordination, and shelter management. She moved to Colorado from Washington where she worked at two organizations north of Seattle. Wyse currently works at Denver Animal Protection as the behavior and transfer coordinator.