4 Ways You Can Help Homeless Animals Without Having To Adopt

Posted on: 8 June 2015

Share

Some people can't stand the thought of seeing a dog, cat or any other animal on the side of the road without a home. In many cases, it is very clear that these animals need help. However, maybe you have an allergic spouse or child. Maybe you just don't have the time to provide the care and attention that an animal deserves. Maybe you don't have room for another animal in the home. Whatever the case, if you feel like you can't help but you want to do something, then here are a few ways you can provide help to those homeless animals:

1. Provide a Temporary Home.

If you aren't able to keep an animal forever, maybe you can keep one for a little while? Some shelters may have a fostering program that sends animals out into loving, caring and giving homes. This can be a period of a few days to even a couple of months. The fostering program may be so that the animals can engage in activity and social play until they are adopted out or it could be that there is no room at the shelter at the time.

2. Donate Pet Toys, Treats and Food.

Many local animal shelters work off of donations and the small amount of money that they receive when they adopt an animal. All in all, shelters don't have a lot of funds to work with. Therefore, donating may be the best way for you to help these homeless animals. You can donate any pet supplies that you've had from previous animals, such as food and water bowels, leashes and collars as well as pet toys. All of these items can even be purchased new, if you can, and taken to the shelter.

3. Volunteer Help at the Shelter.

Whether you help the shelter feed and bathe the animals, or you help with the marketing aspect of the adoption process, there are many ways in which you can help out the shelter and these homeless animals. Your local shelter can inform you if they need any volunteers or need any specialized help when you call. There is usually some sort of opening available, whether it be in the office, kennel or community research because it takes all types of people and skills to make it possible to save animals' lives.

4. Take Them to Veterinary Appointments and Other Places.

Although some animal shelters are able to take care of the animals themselves medically, some are not. If your local animal shelter cannot, you may want to consider joining up as a driver. You can transport the animals to and from their veterinary appointments to ensure that they get the medical attention that they need. If you wanted to save yourself some time, you could start scheduling your own animals' appointments at the same time. Alternatively, you could even help transport the animals to their new forever homes when they are adopted, or to another shelter in the same city (if the city you live in is large enough for something like this).

As you can see, there are numerous ways in which you can help your local animal shelter save those poor, helpless animals that you see that need help. Every little bit of your time, skills and money can make a difference. Speak to your local veterinarian or animal shelter to see how you can help. 

To learn more, contact a veterinarian clinic like Armory Dog & Cat Hospital.