Become a Volunteer

Volunteers are vital to the well-being and adoptability of the animals in our care. You can choose to work with either cats or dogs and follow the instructions below to become a volunteer. As a volunteer, you will be expected to maintain a certain level of time commitment that will be explained to you in detail during orientation. If you are looking to fulfill required service hours, we encourage you to apply for our community service program.

Become a Cat Volunteer

To volunteer alone with cats you must be 14 years of age or older. Children 12 or 13 years old may volunteer with an adult as a “junior volunteer.” If you wish to participate as a junior volunteer, you must attend orientation and training with the adult who will be volunteering with you.  Duties include socializing cats, grooming, helping adopters find their perfect pet, assembling adoption carriers, working adoption events and just providing lots of love to the cats and kittens in our care.

Children from five to 12 years of age are invited to participate in our Book Buddies program.

Please pre-register below for one of our bi-monthly, video orientations.  The cat volunteer onboarding process is a two-part commitment and both steps are required:

  1. Video Orientation - Volunteers who pre-register will receive a link to an orientation video and instructions on or about one of the dates listed below.  This is not a live video and you may watch it on your own time when it is convenient for you.
  2. In-Person Training - You will receive information about scheduling an in-person training session at the animal center after you have completed after the video orientation.  There will be several dates available, but you are only required to attend one.  The training session will be approximately one hour.

Each cat volunteer shift is one hour long and you can sign up for more than one shift at a time. Volunteer shifts are available:

  • Monday through Friday, 10 am to 6 pm
  • Saturday and Sunday, 10 am to 3 pm

If you volunteer on a Saturday, you will be expected to help adopters. The center is closed to the public on Sundays.

Orientation Dates for Cat Volunteers

Please check back in January 2024 for more information about becoming a volunteer.

Become a Dog Volunteer

To volunteer alone with dogs, you must be 16 years of age or older. Children from 12 to 15 years old may volunteer with an adult as a “junior volunteer.” If you wish to participate as a junior volunteer, you must attend orientation and training with the adult who will be volunteering with you. It is important to note that the adult volunteer will be the primary dog handler, junior volunteers are not allowed to hold the leash and walk the dog. Duties include walking dogs, socializing dogs, helping adopters find their perfect pet, working adoption events and just providing lots of love to the dogs in our care. We walk dogs rain or shine, in hot or freezing temperatures, and 365 days a year.

Please pre-register below for one of our bi-monthly orientations.  More information is provided below.  The dog volunteer onboarding process is a three-part process and all three steps are required:

  1. Video Orientation - Volunteers who pre-register will receive a link to the orientation video and instructions on or about one of the dates listed below.  This is not a live video and you may watch it on your own time when it is convenient for you.
  2. Small Group Orientation - This in-person session at the animal center is typically held on the weekend immediately following orientation.  There will be several sessions available over the course of the weekend, but you are only required to attend one.  This session will be approximately 1-1.5 hours long.  This is not a hands-on session.
  3. After your small group orientation, you will sign-up for hands-on training at the center with an experienced volunteer or staff member. There will be several dates and times available. You will be handling and walking dogs during this session, so please dress accordingly. After your hands-on training, you will be able to sign-up to volunteer.

Each dog volunteer shift is two hours long and you can sign up for more than one shift at a time. Volunteer shifts are available:

  • "Sunrise Shift", Monday through Sunday, 6:30 to 8:30 am
  • Monday through Friday, 10 am to 6 pm
  • Saturday and Sunday, 10 am to 3 pm

Dog volunteers must be willing to work a minimum of one shift per week.

Orientation Dates for Dog Volunteers

Please check back in January 2024 for more information about becoming a volunteer.