Episode Notes
Executive DirectorThe individual formally in charge of final decision making at an organization, who sometimes works closely with the organization’s Board of Directors. Sometimes a Founder is an Executive Director, especially early in a nonprofit’s growth stages. Mckenzee and our friend and volunteer Kyle Behrend discuss The Open Sanctuary Project’s brand new Animal Database! This project was long requested by the sanctuary community because keeping thorough, up-to-date records of your residents’ health and life events is a critical aspect of sanctuary care. To make the record-keeping process as simple and efficient as possible, we teamed up with Kyle to create the Animal Database, which you can now copy and begin using today! Keep listening to learn more about the Database, the thought process behind it, and how to use it!
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This Episode’s Referenced Open Sanctuary Project Resources:
- The Open Sanctuary Project’s Animal Database | The Open Sanctuary Project
- Finding The Right Record-Keeping System For Your Sanctuary | The Open Sanctuary Project
- Animal Sanctuary Record-Keeping Basics | The Open Sanctuary Project
Episode Transcript (Auto-GeneratedThe following content was transcribed through an automated process and may contain transcription errors or misspellings.)
Mckenzee Griffler: Hey there, sanctuary and rescue friends, and welcome to another episode of the Open Sanctuary Podcast. We hope you’re doing well out there. I am the Open Sanctuary Projects executive director, Mckenzee Griffler, and today we have something very exciting to share with you and a special guest to help walk us through it. This month, we released a brand new tool that any sanctuary, rescue, shelter, or animal caregiverSomeone who provides daily care, specifically for animal residents at an animal sanctuary, shelter, or rescue. can use right now to help improve the lives of the residents in their care. We are talking about the Open Sanctuary Project’s animal database. This system is built on the air table websites software and is at the time of recording free to use for 10,00 records so that you can try it out at no risk to your wallet. We’ve been long requested to provide something like this for the sanctuary community and we are so grateful that it was developed by our friend and sanctuary volunteer Kyle Behrend along with the help from our staff member Tara and input from the sanctuary community. Kyle’s here to help us walk through a bit of the background, some system features, how to get started with it and a lot more. Hey, Kyle.
Kyle Behrend: Hi. Thank you so much for having me.
Mckenzee Griffler: Thank you so much for being here and thank you so much for developing such a wonderful system. To get us started, I think we’ll start with the basics. What exactly is an animal database and why is it a valuable tool for animal sanctuaries and rescues?
Kyle Behrend: It’s a great question, isn’t it? Um, I think to answer this question, I I’ll go back into my history. I I worked at Edgar’s MissionThe stated goals and activities of an organization. An animal sanctuary’s mission is commonly focused on objectives such as animal rescue and public advocacy. Farm Sanctuary for just over 13 years. And it’s so important for sanctuaries, especially as they are providing the utmost and highest care to these animals to be able to record, monitor, and then implement changes based on this. You know, we’re working in such a new field in terms of providing care to farmed animalsA species or specific breed of animal that is raised by humans for the use of their bodies or what comes from their bodies., which often are seen in a very different lens, especially when you’re looking at it from veterary or agriculture scope. And a lot of the time the care that’s provided to them is very new or unique. And I think it’s so important that sanctuaries have a way to monitor firstly how the animals are doing currently and then if there is any illnesses or treatments to actually then be able to record that and then measure that over time and to be able to use that as a reference to come back to if they come into similar situations in the future. I see these databases as really a fundamental tool in terms of animal care to be able to really provide the best and utmost highest standards of care to the animals that the sanctuaries care for.
Mckenzee Griffler: So stepping back, why don’t you introduce yourself and the kind of work that you do to help animals?
Kyle Behrend: Yeah. No, sure. So, as I mentioned, I spent 13 and a half years at Edgar’s mission. Had a range of roles there, but primarily focused on developing systems to help us care for the animals and to do it in an efficient and effective manner. And it was actually through that experience that part of this animal database was ideated because of such a hard time we found finding an animal database which I’m sure we’ll speak about in a little bit but currently I now still do a little bit with sanctuaries but I focus more in the animal charity space and helping mainly with AI and automations and some system work. So AI is my new craze and very passionate about how it can help nonprofitsNon-governmental organizations whose primary purpose is something other than selling goods or services. make a bigger impact.
Mckenzee Griffler: and that will definitely be the topic for a future podcast if you’re interested. So what exactly is air table? What can it do? And why is it different than say using paper records or templates that open sanctuary provides or even something like excel?
Kyle Behrend: Well, I mean firstly I think we built so many of the database functions on the resources that open sanctuary provided those templates. We’ve just really try to digitize them. And I really often just say that Air Table is like a spreadsheet on steroids. It’s just got a bit more functionality than Excel or Google Sheet. In particular, there’s one feature that we really use a lot, which is called linking records. And that allows us to have multiple tabs within this table that can all be linked to the primary tab, which is our animal. And that allows us to record historical data. You’re often looking at weight history or treatment history when we’re looking at an animal’s record, which can be tricky to do in a scalable way with Excel or Google Sheets. With paper, you run out of space. Air Table is very scalable, allowing continuous monitoring and linking of weights to an animal infinitely.
Other benefits of Air Table include:
• A free tier that allows you to try it out without significant financial or time investment.
• It is a powerful database used by many organizations, leading to other solutions being built on top of it for advanced users.
• It offers customization, flexibility, and scalability.
Regarding paper records, it’s important to digitize them because paper can get damaged, is not scalable, can be hard to read due to different handwriting, and records can get lost. A key advantage of Air Table is the ability to reference records from other media. Sanctuary staff or volunteers can access records on a tablet in the paddock, or a laptop/phone can be taken to the vet, providing historical records without needing to find physical paper files, as it’s all living online in the cloud and accessible anywhere with an internet connection.
Mckenzee Griffler: So, we talked a little bit. You mentioned weight, you mentioned things like vet records. What other records would you see sanctuaries who are just getting started with the concept of moving to a digital animal database? What kind of records do you see them really benefiting to start utilizing through this system?
Kyle Behrend: So, I think weight is important, temperature, I think the main thing that most sanctuaries are doing is regular health checks. It can be quite tricky to record all of that data without a solution like this, which allows you to monitor animals’ health month on month or week by week. There’s a whole range of different health checks built into the database. As I said, it’s very customizable and flexible, so you can add anything specific to your sanctuary. Besides weight, temperature, and health checks, we’ve also included animal movements to different paddocks. Everything we put there is a great place to start, and because it’s so scalable, you can pick and choose where you begin.
Mckenzee Griffler: Absolutely. One thing that really liked when I was going through the system was just how everything in the system is so interconnected. Like you have your residents, but you can split them up very quickly by what living spaceThe indoor or outdoor area where an animal resident lives, eats, and rests. they’re in or what breed they might be or their health status or, you know, like the fact that you can just look at one animal’s overview and then you can see all their vet visits and you can even upload the actual vet report to it to make sure that you’re not missing anything without having to work overtime to transcribe a vet’s handwriting, but you can still get the details in as you’re going to the vet visit. And I am so excited at Open Sanctuary, we’re always saying, yeah, if you have to use paper documents, we’ve got templates for you. We’re really excited that you’re doing this. But if you’re ready to step up and work into a system that is going to give you a more holistic control over your data and really let you look at historic trends for what’s been going on with for residents. This is just such a powerful tool in animal care and that’s why we’re so excited that you’ve developed this system for all these organizations. And I know that you chatted a lot with Tara and possibly with some other sanctuaries or in your own experience. What kinds of features did you find were really important for sanctuaries to have in this kind of database, especially things that weren’t being well served in other solutions already out there that sanctuaries might have been trying to adapt?
Kyle Behrend: In my personal experience, we found that existing software didn’t suit sanctuaries well.
• Agricultural software often didn’t allow naming animals, only identifying them by tags or numbers.
• Veterinary software was useful but not ideal, being too focused on appointments and follow-ups for vets.
• ZooAn organization where animals, either rescued, bought, borrowed, or bred, are kept, typically for the benefit of human visitor interest. and aquarium software was the best fit but had too many functionalities, making it overly complicated and lacking customizable options needed by sanctuaries.
Air Table excels at bringing these elements together, allowing the design of a powerful system specifically tailored for sanctuary needs. You can filter data on any field, creating views to see all current pigs, chickens, or sheep, and even go deeper to filter by specific paddock. This flexibility provides a centralized “source of truth” for animal information, unlike scattered whiteboards or notes. If an animal moves, updating one database entry makes it live for everyone, rather than needing to update multiple physical locations.
Another great feature of Air Table is the ability to add uploads, images, star ratings, and checkboxes, making it more visually appealing than Excel or Google Sheets. You can bring up an animal’s record and immediately see an image, which is very powerful for identification. You can also upload multiple images of animals as they grow, providing a visual historical record alongside current photos for easy identification and treatment over time.
Mckenzee Griffler: So, what kind of setup is required to get this going? I know on our website you’ve provided extensive video tutorials which are super detailed and wonderful for walking even a light like me through the system. But for those who are listening and who are interested who might feel a little intimidated about the concept of setting up a database, could you walk us through the basics?
Kyle Behrend: Yeah. So again, another amazing feature of Air Table is that we can create this template and then allow it to be duplicated onto anyone else’s system. To get started, it’s as simple as:
1 Clicking on the provided link which takes you directly to the database to interact with it and see its external perspective.
2 If you decide to proceed, click “copy this base to your account”.
3 Create a free Air Table account if you don’t have one. Within seconds, you will have a complete replica of the database on your system. The only thing missing are the automations, which are more advanced, but there are videos to guide you through setting those up. Automations help streamline processes like moving multiple animals or giving group vaccines, making life easier, though they aren’t 100% necessary to start. The template contains dummy data, allowing you to experiment before clearing it out and starting with your own animal data. It’s very easy to get started.
Mckenzee Griffler: So, what are some costs associated with using this system? We mentioned that at least at the time of recording a thousand records don’t require any cost, but you know, I know sanctuaries are always looking to make sure that you know everything is within their budget. So, where can costs go with an air table system like this?
Kyle Behrend: Yes, you can start for free and get 1,000 records, though most sanctuaries will likely outgrow that quickly. The standard cost is $20 per user per month. However, Air Table offers a 50% nonprofitA non-governmental organization whose primary purpose is something other than selling goods or services. discount at the time of recording, bringing the cost down to $10 per user per month.
The key to managing costs is that you don’t need to provide a paid user to everyone who needs to access the database. It’s recommended to pay for one or two users, such as a primary admin and one other person who needs backend access. This is because the system leverages forms extensively, allowing other users to input data into the database without needing direct backend access or paid accounts. This approach offers both cost benefits and enhances data security and privacy.
For example, you could create a QR code that links to a form, allowing a volunteer or staff member to add data to the database without logging into the system directly. Forms have been created for various inputs, including:
• Moving animals to different locations
• Observations
• Animal treatments and health checks
• Weights
• Hoof trims
• Vet visits
• Vaccines
• Labs
• Dental care
• Transportation
• Adding a new animal (via an animal intake form)
So, sanctuaries can effectively manage costs by using one or two paid users and then leveraging these forms for other staff and volunteers to input data.
Mckenzee Griffler: And that information and so much more is available on the resource which will be linked in the show notes and will be very easy to find on our website. And I know you were really excited about some of the more advanced ways that Air Table can be leveraged even beyond what you’ve already talked about. So for sanctuary folks who are even a little bit more technically inclined or who are ready to get in the weeds. What else could you do with this system?
Kyle Behrend: This is where it can go into many different directions. I love automating as much manual work as possible.
• Automations: A couple of automations are available to build following video tutorials, helping with moving multiple animals or giving group vaccines. Learning to leverage these automations within Air Table can be incredibly time-beneficial.
• External Tools Integration: Using tools like make.com or Zapier provides powerful integrations with Air Table for more automations. For example, if a sanctuary uses Slack, an automation could send a message to a “animal movements” channel whenever an animal moves, stating “animal X has now moved to paddock Y,” combining the database’s power with a communication tool.
• Turning the Database into an Interface: This allows the database to function like an app or web-based system, providing a nicer appearance and more functionality.
◦ Air Table’s own interface builder can be used.
◦ Alternatively, tools like Softer or Frontly can be used to build a full front-end interface on top of the Air Table database. This interface can be hosted on a custom domain or URL, allowing volunteers and staff to log in and access various resources, including animal data, sanctuary policies, procedures, videos, and training, all within a centralized hub.
These advanced features, especially automations and creating web apps, are very exciting possibilities for the system.
Mckenzee Griffler: Yeah. And I remember the softer front end that you showed for the database like for the dummy database and it was just so beautiful and I could think of so many ways that sanctuaries could display this information both internally and externally and really the possibilities are endless. But the thing that’s so beautiful about this system is if you just want to use the basics, the basics work. Like you don’t have to have an advanced degree in air table or databases to get started with it, but there is so much room for expansion and growth if you want to get into it and I think that’s what is so exciting about it to me. What excites you most about a system like this being made available to sanctuaries around the world?
Kyle Behrend: I am very system focused, always looking for how systems can support human work. What excites me most is the accessibility and scalability of this solution, as a dedicated solution for sanctuaries has been lacking. You can clone the database and start using it immediately without technical expertise; if you’ve used Google Sheets or Excel, you’ll pick it up easily. While there are new fields like attachments, ratings, and linked fields, once these concepts are grasped, users can do a lot. The system can be scaled into much more advanced setups, addressing sanctuaries’ need for customizable options, as each sanctuary is unique in its animals, care methods, and data recording needs, unlike predefined software solutions. This allows each sanctuary to run the database in a way that makes the most sense for them.
Mckenzee Griffler: So as these systems like Air Table mature over time and as technology continues to grow in the way that it’s growing. Why is it important to get started now with a system like this animal database?
Kyle Behrend: I think data collection is going to be one of the most important resources leading into this AI age. AI is intelligence applied to information or data, and we’re seeing AI integrations being built into solutions like Air Table, Notion, and Salesforce. To benefit from AI, we need our data in these systems. It’s crucial to start inputting as much data as possible, with historical data being even better. As AI advances, a time will come where we can ask AI questions about animals, such as identifying weight trends over years to spot concerns. AI can also be trained to run in the background, looking at metrics and picking up on patterns, as it’s very good at pattern recognition. It could identify when something moves outside the norm, like a 10% weight drop in three months, and flag it for attention. AI isn’t about replacement, but about augmenting human efforts and leveraging data for better, personalized responses and animal care. It acts as an “extra set of digital eyes” on the data, identifying potential issues before they become critical, which could be life-saving in situations where sanctuary staff have limited bandwidth. Ultimately, these tools help sanctuaries provide the best possible care to the animals.
Mckenzee Griffler: Well, I could not have said it any better myself, Kyle. Thank you so much for your time and your incredible volunteership on this project. We’ve already heard from so many sanctuaries out there who are incredibly excited to explore this system and we hope that this introduction is exciting for listeners who might not have heard about it yet.
Kyle Behrend: Well, thank you so much for the opportunity and um yeah, I look forward to hearing how more sanctuaries start using the software.
Mckenzee Griffler: Thanks again for listening. Everybody, this has been another lovely episode of the Open Sanctuary Podcast. As always, if you have questions, comments, resource, questions, or requests, or podcast topics you’d like us to talk about, please feel free to get in touch by using the contact form on our website. All right, talk to you later.
