How to Volunteer For Your Local Dog Shelter

Animal shelters and animal welfare agencies always need volunteers. They need money too! But besides donating money there are a ton of other ways you can help.

Did you know you can foster a dog? Yep, many shelters don't have enough room for all the animals brought to them so they need people to house these animals until they can be placed in a permanent home. Or sometimes a dog may be ill or too young to be adopted. How fun to care for one of these dogs until they are ready for adoption.

Some shelter dogs could use obedience training and you can be the one to take him there. You can volunteer your time at the shelter where you can walk the dogs, or clean the kennels, or work in the office.

If you are computer savvy, you can help create posters about adoption events or create brochures with adoption information. If you are a photographer, you can take pictures of the dogs that need adopting. Many shelters post their dogs online and they need great pictures to show potential adopters.

You can use your own vehicle to help transport dogs - either taking a foster dog to a vet appointment or picking up a dog that needs to be rescued and brought to the shelter. If you're a breeder, could you donate a portion of the money you make on each puppy to an animal shelter?

Did you know that some agencies rescue dogs from out of state? You could donate your frequent flyer miles to fly a dog from another area to the safety of the shelter. You could even notify the shelter when you're flying and be the one to accompany a dog back to the shelter.

If you have an extra bowl, or some toys, or a collar your dog has outgrown, donate them. All help is welcome. These are just a few of the many things you can do to help a dog in a shelter. Just call and ask what you can do to volunteer or fill out an online application that many of the shelters are now using.