Tara Blot is executive director of the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria, which opened in 1946 and is one of the oldest humane societies in the region.

The Welfare League takes in hundreds of animals at a time and provides adoption services and educational outreach in addition to animal control for the city. Blot has worked for the organization since 1991.

How did you become interested in helping animals? 

From the time I was really little, every book and everything I owned had to do with animals. I used to put together dictionaries of cat breeds and horse breeds. It drove my parents crazy. I had a really serious interest from very early on.

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Did you have many pets growing up?

I did not, surprisingly. We had a cocker spaniel, he lived until he was 16 years old. His name was Sandy — technically Sandy-go-round because he used to spin around when you’d feed him. And I had a goldfish here and there.

What is it like working every day with animals?

It’s not a happy place every day but there are happy stories that happen every day. Honestly it is hard to come in every day, but what keeps me coming back is that for that one animal, whoever it happens to be, we are helping them and making a big difference in that animal’s life.

How many animals are in your shelter?

We always have more than 100. Right now we probably have closer to 200. Spring and summer are busy, especially for cats.

What kind of animals do you take?

We take anything that walks through our door, or rather anything considered a small animal. Primarily it is cats, dogs and rabbits. We also have lots of birds, guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, chinchillas and ferrets. We had a tarantula not too long ago, and we’ve also had a potbellied pig and a pygmy goat.