I spent much of my college summers dog walking at the animal shelter in Berkeley, CA. After I graduated college, my first job was being an animal summer camp counselor at the East Bay SPCA animal shelter in Oakland. It was a nonprofit where I got to know and love many dogs, and I helped young kids from kindergarten to high school-age train them and get to know the dogs. We got to know shy dogs, outgoing dogs, sneaky dogs, sweet dogs, dogs that loved cheese, dogs that loved hot dog snacks. The kids and the counselors (like me) performed plays about the dogs' experience at the shelter, and about the dogs' experiences with each other. We made toys for the dogs, and we provided love to the shelter dogs no matter their progress. Some dogs came from unfortunate backgrounds and it was fulfilling to see them slowly open up to us. From that experience I enjoyed playing with both kids and dogs.