Shelters to the Rescue

Animal shelters do what they can to help the lost, abused, and abandoned. Staff and selfless volunteers work to provide these animals with the love and care they deserve. But they need your help. There are so many ways that people like you can help these cats and dogs find homes and continue to receive the help they need.

Spread the Word

Hang up fliers. Advertise the shelter or upcoming events that benefit the animals. Distributing fliers in spaces like pet stores, veterinary offices, parks, and other places that animal lovers and potential adopters might see them will help animals immensely.

Share adoption profiles on social media. Who doesn’t love seeing sweet cats and dogs on their Facebook or Twitter feed? This task is so simple, but could play a huge part in creating the perfect match for an animal need and their forever family.

Transport animals. There are some shelters that have a hard time arranging transportation for veterinary appointments or to other facilities. Donating a little of your time will help animals get the outside care they need and allows the staff and volunteers to get more work done.

Walk dogs and pet cats. Shelters may rely on volunteers to help exercise and socialize their animals. Play time has huge psychological and physical benefits for waiting animals. This socialization will help animals adjust when they are adopted.

Gathering Supplies

Donate Wish List Items. Every shelter prepares a wish list of items that benefit the animals. These items can range from food to cleaning supplies. In case you need extra incentive, any item dropped off can be added to your charitable donation section for taxes.

Unleash Your Special Talents

Arts and Crafts. There are thousands of projects that you can work on that shelter animals will love. Old T-shirts, jeans, or blankets can be used to create homemade toys and bedding. If you’re looking for a project to start, Pinterest has many ideas at your disposal.

Carpenters and DIY Experts. Time to time shelters will need help with improvements or big projects. You can help out with repairs or improvements ranging from repairing doors to building a new cat tree.

Dog Trainers. Shelter dog need a lot of training to prepare them for loving homes. It gives dogs a better chance at getting adopted if they are trained and housebroken. By being a dog trainer, you can also do behavior evaluations for new arrivals, and help the shelter identify an animal’s personality.

Website designers. Shelters need to constantly update their websites as animals are adopted or are made available for adoption. Whether there is a staff member already in charge of this or not, they will appreciate as much help as they can get. There is a lot that goes into maintaining a website, and the extra help will not go unnoticed.

Writers. Shelters do an enormous amount of writing. There needs to be an adoption profile for each pet, newsletters must be sent out regularly, advertisements for events and fundraisers need to be drawn up, grant applications must be written, press releases need to be sent, and much more.

Social Media Experts. For shelters to get the word out about their adoptable animals and programs, they utilize social media. The need for social media is crucial and therefore must be used and updated constantly.

Photographers. Each adoption profile needs a photo and it helps chances of adoption when those photos are high-quality. Volunteer your camera skills to make animals look their best and capture their personality. If this interest you, check out HeartsSpeak, an organization that help photographers partner with shelters.

FUNdraising Ideas

Your Birthday. Birthdays are a perfect opportunity to gather donations for shelters. Facebook has made this an easy process by allowing your friends to donate to the cause you choose as a present for your birthday. You could invite your friends to a day of volunteering at a shelter. You could even host your birthday party at a shelter or dog park.

Your Wedding. The popularity of having a no-gifts wedding registry is growing, which makes the idea of donating to a shelter even better. You can set up a registry page with monetary donations going straight to the rescue or shelter of your choice.