OAKLAND – Jarrod Cooper can't take two steps in the Oakland Animal Shelter without stopping.
He might pause to pick up an abused dog recovering from surgery, gaze out a window at roosters rescued from a life of cockfighting or help socialize for adoption a malnourished animal being nursed back to health – all while wearing a huge grin.
And when discussing Code 597, the nonprofit he founded to fight animal cruelty, before taking a group of about a dozen Raiders fans dutifully dressed in silver and black – masks and all – for a tour of the shelter, Cooper is just as happy.
The shelter might as well be Cooper's second home. When he didn't have football last season, it became his solace.
Hit with a four-game suspension to start the season after violating the NFL's steroid and related substances policy, the Raiders safety seriously began considering life without the game when the team cut him before training camp.
That led Cooper to reflect on what he would like to do when his playing days end, and he turned to his childhood dream of being a veterinarian.
The Raiders eventually re-signed Cooper, and although his 2007 season was cut short by a torn anterior cruciate ligament in Week 12, that couldn't get him down. He had found solace in working with the animals.
"It changed my life," Cooper said. "I'm actually moving here. I live in (South) Carolina, but I want to work with animals when I'm done."
Cooper, however, isn't waiting until he's done with the NFL to pursue a career as an animal control officer.
If Cooper isn't working out, he's at the shelter or on his way. If he can't be there, he's calling to check in.
Cooper has attacked working with animals the same way he tracks down punt returners as a gunner on special teams – full steam ahead with no regard for anyone trying to stop him.
"He wants to beat down the door of somebody," said animal control officer Andrew Gordon, who has spent 33 years at the shelter. "Especially for the animals."
Cooper isn't literally tackling animal abusers – although if he could, he probably would – but he does help screen families that want to adopt animals and goes out of his way to help educate others on animal abuse.
Last fall, he began taking ride-alongs with animal control officers. Instead of using Tuesdays, the team's day off, to rest, Cooper spent eight-hour days volunteering to beat down the doors of animal abusers.
"It was Code 597 left and right," Cooper said. "We picked up dogs, cats, dead animals. It was nonstop. I was exhausted when we were done."
Cooper has spent many a tiring day at the shelter doing whatever needs to be done.
"Nothing's beneath him," animal control officer Nicole Frede said. "He's been in kennels cleaning up dog poop, and we have people to do that – on his hands and knees picking up dog poop in the kennel when he doesn't have to."
If you didn't know better, you might assume Cooper was on the payroll. Instead, it's Cooper pouring money into the shelter, including the recent addition of the "Coop," an open area for dogs to roam free.
He speaks in "we" terms when talking about the shelter and gives tours with a comfort level that proves he spends as much time rehabilitating his knee as he does helping socialize animals for adoption.
"He really is addicted to this place because I had to put him on a schedule," said his girlfriend, Erica Arana, who helps with the nonprofit and volunteers at the shelter. "I'd call him and say, 'Hello, you can't possibly still be there. The place closes at 6.' He really is here every day."
Though his veterinary dreams were derailed when he realized the curriculum was too intensive to coincide with playing college football at Kansas State, Cooper never lost his love for animals.
Code 597 was born out of Cooper's desire to educate the public on how to properly care for animals. He reminds people on tours of the facility, for example, that it's not OK to leave their dog chained all day. The program also pays for animals to be spayed or neutered if owners can't afford to do so.
It's all part of the perspective Cooper has gained from working at the shelter.
"I don't think any player really has it that bad," Cooper said in between playing with dogs. "You're living the dream and doing what you want to do. You come here and see reality.
"Working here probably prolonged my career. It takes a lot of stress off you. (After retiring), I'll probably be an ACO with a big thing of mace to spray people with."
So if you're out to harm animals, cover your eyes.
Read Jason Jones' Raiders blog at www.sacbee.com/blogs.
