The other day I read an article about an Oklahoma ASPCA using technology to adopt cats.

People can log on for 2 minutes of playtime, control various toys remotely, and just get back in the queue when the 2 minutes are up.

Not related to social media the way that my school project is aimed at, but it’s still a unique use of technology. It also seems to be working, since the cats are being adopted.

It’s probably random seeming to those who aren’t in animal rescue, but while reading this article, I couldn’t help but wonder if the ASPCA had to jump through any hoops with bureaucracy to make this happen. Through anecdotes and my own experience, sometimes board members of animal groups don’t see eye to eye on different marketing techniques, with elements of technology being part of it. You end up with websites in dire need of being updated that are ignored while members of the community debate what should go up, discussions on what should be posted to Facebook, or if the group should even have a Facebook. These things seem like cake compared to implementing something as different as an online queue for cat interaction.

Admittedly, it can be frustrating to work on what I hope will help shelters in the way of technology, only to find that there are members who don’t want to adopt it anyway. Leading a horse to water, and all that.

Recommended: Oklahoma animal shelter using technology to connect adopters with cats