Case File 009 — Ethnographic Research

Inside the Adoption Event

An ethnographic study of how volunteers, adopters, animals, and public space shape the experience of a mobile adoption event.

Role: Researcher, Photographer, Video Editor
Team: Two-person team
Timeline: Fall 2025
Course: Methods in Media Studies
Methods: Participant observation, interviews, visual documentation, web design

Visit the WordPress Site ↗ Watch the Final Video ↗

An Animal Care Centers of NYC mobile adoption truck parked along a Brooklyn sidewalk, its shutters printed with photos of an adoptable dog and cat above the words Adopt, Volunteer, Donate

01 — Overview

About the project

Inside the Adoption Event examined pop-up adoption events organized by Animal Care Centers of NYC, the city's main open-intake animal shelter organization.

Unlike traditional shelter visits, these events bring adoptable animals into casual public settings where visitors can browse, interact with them, and begin the adoption process without an appointment.

Through field observations, volunteer interviews, informal conversations, and visual documentation, our group explored how these temporary spaces are organized and how emotional, institutional, and social dynamics shape adoption.

A crowd gathered under a blue pop-up tent on a Brooklyn sidewalk at an Animal Care Centers of NYC adoption event, with a leashed puppy sitting at the front of the crowd — A pop-up adoption event turns an ordinary sidewalk into a gathering point.

02 — Fieldwork

Following the research

Our initial questions focused on how the events worked and how people selected animals. As the fieldwork continued, our attention shifted toward the volunteers who made these interactions possible.

We observed how volunteers:

Introduced animals and explained their behavior
Guided adopters through policies and paperwork
Managed lines, crowds, and limited time
Balanced emotional attachment with institutional responsibility
Helped visitors evaluate compatibility and care needs

An Animal Care Centers of NYC volunteer in a branded beanie handing paperwork to a visitor beside the mobile adoption truck — A volunteer walks a visitor through the adoption paperwork.

Two volunteers helping a visitor fill out forms at a table draped in an Animal Care Centers of NYC tablecloth, surrounded by clipboards, treats, and donated water bottles — Adopt, volunteer, donate — the paperwork that turns interest into an adoption.

The events turned adoption into a public and collective process. Visitors watched one another interact with animals, compared options, and sometimes negotiated around animals that several people wanted to adopt.

Scarcity also shaped the experience. Certain animals were adopted quickly, encouraging visitors to arrive early and make emotionally significant decisions within a limited period.

A line of visitors in winter coats waiting outside the Animal Care Centers of NYC mobile adoption truck on a Brooklyn street corner — Arriving early: a line forms outside the mobile adoption truck.

03 — Community

A community built through care

Our interviews revealed that volunteers served as both informational guides and emotional mediators.

Many began volunteering because they loved animals or wanted to spend time with them without becoming owners. Over time, that personal motivation developed into a deeper sense of responsibility toward the animals, adopters, and organization.

A smiling Animal Care Centers of NYC volunteer kneeling on a sidewalk beside a large gray dog wearing a harness — A volunteer with one of the dogs waiting to meet its next family.

A small tan chihuahua wrapped snugly in a white towel, held in the arms of an Animal Care Centers of NYC volunteer wearing a teal lanyard — Emotional labor, one towel-wrapped dog at a time.

The public setting also changed how animals were encountered. Rather than meeting them inside an unfamiliar shelter, visitors could observe how they behaved in a lively, everyday environment.

A passerby in a white cap bending down to pet a black and white dog wearing a fleece blanket coat outside a pop-up shop — A passerby stops to meet a dog dressed against the cold.

Together, the tents, signage, volunteers, paperwork, animals, and surrounding crowd transformed an ordinary sidewalk into a temporary community organized around care.

A group of smiling visitors gathered around a newly adopted dog in a blue coat, one of them carrying an Animal Care Centers of NYC tote bag — The moment a visitor becomes an adopter.

04 — Photography

Photographing the sidewalk

Alongside field notes and interviews, we documented the events visually — the volunteers, the animals, and the crowd that gathered around them.

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Visitors gathered around a dog in a teal vest outside a storefront, while another dog rests on a blanket in the doorway behind them — Visitors gather around one of the dogs up for adoption.

A volunteer carrying an Animal Care Centers of NYC cardboard carrier through a crowd gathered under the adoption tent — A volunteer carries a carrier through the crowd.

A dog play-wrestling with an orange lion-mane toy held by two laughing visitors beside an Animal Care Centers of NYC boroughbreds truck — Play, right on the sidewalk.

A volunteer kneeling beside a dog seated on its own bed and water bowl outside a storefront — A dog's own bed and bowl, set up for the day.

A small dog in a blue coat on a leash, standing on the sidewalk beside a line of visitors — Dressed for the weather, waiting for a match.

A volunteer crouched beside a dog in a camouflage coat, resting on a dog bed next to a row of household trash cans on an ordinary residential sidewalk — An ordinary sidewalk, briefly reorganized around care.

An Animal Care Centers of NYC table covered in clipboards, pamphlets, and a clear donation box, seen from behind two visitors — The paperwork and pamphlets behind every adoption.

A small white terrier mix looking up at the camera with its front paws resting on someone's knee — Making a case for itself.

05 — Interviews

Talking with the volunteers

To go beyond what we could observe from the sidewalk, we sat down with Animal Care Centers of NYC volunteers to hear about their motivations, their daily responsibilities, and what the events look like from their side of the table.

Video thumbnail for an interview with Lauren, an Animal Care Centers of NYC volunteer — Interview 1 — Lauren, an ACC volunteer, on why she does this work.

Video thumbnail for an interview with Alex, another Animal Care Centers of NYC volunteer — Interview 2 — Alex, another ACC volunteer, on life from the other side of the table.

06 — The Film

The final video

Our final project combined written ethnographic analysis with interviews, photographs, and a short documentary video.

The video brought together moments from the adoption events and conversations with volunteers, showing the emotional labor and everyday acts of care that sustained the space.

Video thumbnail for the Inside the Adoption Event final documentary — Inside the Adoption Event — the final documentary.

07 — Reflection

Looking back

This project introduced me to ethnography as an evolving research process. Our guiding question changed as we spent more time in the field, moving from how people choose animals to how volunteers and adopters collectively construct a culture of care within the pressures of urban shelter systems.