It’s a normal day at the Vanderburgh Humane Society (VHS), where families visit, and volunteers care for the dogs, cats and even turtles.
But this spring, film crews for TLC’s 1000-lb Sisters were here to follow show co-star Tammy Slaton, as she volunteered at the shelter.
Overall, the show follows sisters Amy and Tammy who at one point weighed 1,000 pounds combined.
Slaton had lost 500 pounds and underwent skin removal surgery. Volunteering, according to a news release, is part of her taking on “more responsibilities than ever” at nearly age 40. Slaton volunteered at the VHS for the duration of filming, which happened early spring of 2025.
VHS Director of Development Amanda Coburn hopes the shelter experience is portrayed positively.
“I think there's still a big stigma out there that animal shelters are always sad, depressing. You know, terrible places to go and you're just going to leave there crying,” Coburn said.
“While it can inherently be a little bit sad … volunteering here is joyful, and that even when there are sad moments, you know, the vast majority of the time it's, it's a joy and a love to be a volunteer and a staff member here.”
Coburn says they had to prepare for the spring 2025 filming. It was multiple days in a row, so staff had to wear the same clothes for the sake of continuity.
“We had to make sure that our staff was here,” she said. “We just scheduled it on during a time when there were not many people off work, so that we could all be here and have all hands on deck.”
Coburn said aside from bringing in volunteers, she hopes the show drives donations and traffic to the non-profit’s website.
This is the 59th year of the Vanderburgh Humane Society.
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