What is the Cleveland APL Dog’s Day Out program?

CLEVELAND — If you’ve ever dreamed of a day filled with tail wags, slobbery kisses, and four-legged companionship — but can’t commit to adopting a pet — the Cleveland Animal Protective League has the perfect solution.

It’s called Dog’s Day Out Cleveland, a feel-good program that lets you “jailbreak” a shelter pup for an afternoon. Whether it’s a walk in the park, a lakeside hike, or lunch on a dog-friendly patio, it’s a chance for these adoptable dogs to de-stress, explore, and maybe even find their forever home.

There are walking pups and riding pups. Silly pups and slurpy pups. Snuggly pups and sleepy pups. No two pups are alike, but all have benefitted from this special program at the Cleveland APL. 

“Members of the community can come forward to take dogs out of the shelter, get them out for a break. And then have the community interact with them. It also helps boost social media posts for them so it gets them adopted a little bit quicker,” explained Paulina Kossakowski, animal care manager at the Cleveland APL.  

To see how it works, we asked for the perfect “demo” dog. Lula, a 7-year-old bully mix, was happy to help. 

Each dog comes with a backpack full of supplies, and a vest that lets others know they’re available for adoption.

The program officially launched last winter. Anyone interested can sign up online, choose an available date and take a pup out for a field trip. 

“We are seeing really positive results from being able to get the dogs out of the shelter and seen by the community,” Kossakowski said. 

It's working! About 65% of those pups who've gone out have gone on to be adopted. Lula, who's been in foster care and is a regular on field trips is still looking for her forever family! 

“She's been with us for quite a while. She's actually been in a couple of foster homes. Um, she is a regular actually of our field trip program, so she goes out quite often. The community gets to see her,” Kossakowski said. 

(Learn more about sweet, sweet Lula HERE.)

Signing up is easy. Just visit the Cleveland APL Dog’s Day Out page and fill out a short questionnaire about your preferences and experience.

“So if you prefer a dog that's athletic, can be jumping out the on leash, um, it just helps us kind of set guidelines for what you can handle when you're taking that dog out for a field trip,” Kossakowski said. 

Dog's day out also provides the APL with valuable feedback and information about the pup you spend the day with. All of it helps match them with the perfect human in the future!

Dog’s Day Out field trips are currently available on Saturdays and Sundays, and spots do fill up quickly. The APL hopes to expand the program to more days in the future.

Whether you're up for a run, a ride, or a rest — your outing could give a shelter dog more than just a fun day. It might help them find a home.