Search Results for: blog starting a shelter getting the community involved

Holiday Help for Animal Shelters

Let’s face it: most animal shelters need help throughout the year in the form of volunteers, monetary donations, and donations of food and other items for the residents. But the holidays are a great time to offer a little extra help to your favorite shelter! If you’re the sort of person who buys holiday gifts for your furry, feathered, and scaly family members, you might want to think about picking up an extra something and bringing it to your local shelter. Food, treats, and toys are always welcome. Your local shelter may also keep a list of specifics they need … Continue reading →

Adopt-a-Shelter Cat Month Starts Today: How to Participate

June is known in some circles as Adopt-a-Shelter Cat Month, which was started by American Humane. I suspected June was probably selected because right about now shelters are overflowing with kittens. (I based this assumption on my personal experiences with Tabby –first finding her and then finding out she was pregnant.) I was right. Out of the millions of cats who enter shelters each year, only about one in four are adopted into loving homes. In fact, most of them –more than 70 percent of them– must be euthanized. ~Statement from American Humane Yikes! That statistic breaks my heart. (I … Continue reading →

Starting A Shelter: Legal Stuff

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There is so much legal stuff that goes into starting a shelter that it can be overwhelming! This checklist will at least help you get started; you may want to talk to a lawyer or someone from the Small Business Association for assistance. Incorporate or don’t incorporate? Incorporation can protect you from personally being held responsible for any number of things. That little “inc.” after your name helps lend credibility to your shelter. You can get your incorporation paperwork from your Secretary of State office or your state’s Corporation Commission. What’s in a name? You’ve got to register your corporate … Continue reading →

The Pets Blog Week in Review for May 21-27

Delivered for your reading pleasure is another installment of the Pets Blog Week in Review. Below you’ll find all the topics Aimee and I covered the previous week. Monday, May 21 Poor Aimee, Moose and Lally! They just arrive in their new town, find a great dog park, and what happens? Poor Moose gets attacked! Aimee tells all about it in You Should Have Seen the Other Guy? This incident also sparked her to write about dog aggression in general. The days of aggression in my household (except mine is cat-based) might be nearing an end as there have been … Continue reading →

Starting A Shelter: Getting the Community Involved

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Unless you have limitless financial resources and can do all the work yourself (trust me, you can’t!) your shelter is going to need community support. So how do you do it? Publicity is key. If no one knows about your shelter, no one can help you. Start a mailing list. Include your animal-loving friends and family. Ask your volunteers, workers, and board of directors for names and addresses, too! Keep a sign-up sheet available at your shelter and at all events to keep that mailing list growing. Keep your website current. A website that is never updated isn’t going to … Continue reading →