Get Involved!

For some people, coming down to the shelter to look at our animals isn't enough.  They volunteer their time, foster animals, and donate goods and money.  There are many things that you can do to get involved and help the animals that we care for.

Volunteer Orientations are held every other Sunday morning at 1PM.  Contact the Volunteer Coordinator, Richard Clehouse, volcoordinator.richard@gmail.com, to find out when the next orientation will be held.  You can print off a Volunteer Application and bring it to the orientation.

Dog Walking 

At the shelter:  Volunteers are needed to take the dogs outside to our dog park twice a day for exercise and to use the bathroom.  Our dog walking coordinator is Donna Hardcastle.  Contact her at 200-5629 or email her at FASdogwalking@gmail.com as soon as you can to arrange for training.  You will be scheduled either weekly or bimonthly to walk the dogs.  

At the Farmer’s Market (Saturday Mornings): Once on our volunteer email list, watch for emails requesting help. You must be willing to transport a dog, in your car, to and from the market.   

Cat Socialization

At the shelter:  For shelter cats, even twenty minutes outside of a cage with a human can be the best part of their day.  Go to the front desk for your first visit and tell them that you are a new volunteer and want to socialize the cats.  They will have a shelter attendant get you started.  After the first visit you can go anytime the shelter is open.  

PetsMart:  Volunteers are needed at the PetsMart adoption center to represent the shelter.  Our cat coordinator for PetsMart is Carol Gerle.  Contact Joni at jmosher@ci.fayetteville.ar.us or 444-3456 to get more information .  You will need some informal training to be able to help potential adopters at PetsMart.  The cats are at PetsMart on a rotational basis.  

Office Assistance

Our volunteer office coordinator is Joni at jmosher@ci.fayetteville.ar.us.  Duties in the office include data entry, answering the phones, and assisting office staff. You will need to be trained for this activity. 

Adoption Advising:  Adoption Advisors meet with potential adopters to show available animals.  You will need to be trained to do this activity as a basic understanding of Shelter procedures is needed.  Please contact Joni at jmosher@ci.fayetteville.ar.us, if you are interested in assisting with adoptions. 

Clinic 

Contact Sherry Fredericks, Vet Assistant, 718-7696, to get started.  You can assist Sherry in preparing dogs and cats for surgery and/or caring for them after surgery.  Cleaning and doing laundry is another way to help the dogs and cats in the clinic.  This is an excellent volunteer opportunity for anyone interested in veterinary medicine.

Household Chores  

Washing dishes in the food preparation room or doing the laundry gives shelter staff more time to spend with the public.  After orientation, go to the front desk on your first visit and tell them that you are a new volunteer and want to help with the dishes or doing the laundry.  They will have a shelter attendant get you started.  

Bathing/Grooming Dogs: A well groomed dog is far more adoptable than a dirty one.  You will need to be trained to do this activity.  Please let Richard, volcoordinator.richard@gmail.com, know if you are interested so he can arrange for your training.

Dog Photographers:  Photographers are needed to take pictures of available animals to be posted on the shelter's Petfinder website.  You must be willing to be scheduled and work in a team environment.  Writing appealing narratives about the dogs is as essential as getting good photos of the dogs.  Orientation and training is needed to participate in this activity.  Please, no college students.  Contact Sandy Dillard at  sdillard@supind.com or 957-7212 to get trained and scheduled.

Foster Care

Foster care volunteers (also called foster parents) provide temporary care for kittens, puppies, cats and dogs in their homes. By offering your time, energy, and home to an animal in need, you prepare the animal for adoption into a permanent, loving home. We are always looking for foster homes, especially throughout the busy spring and summer seasons. The more foster parents we have, the more lives we can save.  Foster parents must be 21 years old and willing to separate their own animals from their foster animals.  The average time to foster depends on the needs of the animal and is based on factors like age, health, and behavioral issues.  Some may only require two weeks in foster care while some may require up to a month.  To be considered for fostering, please turn in a Foster Application to the shelter.

Donations:

The Shelter has many needs that can be filled by donations from the public.  All donations are tax-deductible.  As well as financial donations, we are also in need of the following:

- Blankets

- Towels

- Pet carriers

- Canned pet food

- Newspapers

- Aluminum cans (by the trash bag)

- Office supplies

- Bleach, laundry soap, dish soap, and paper towels

There is no need to schedule an appointment to drop off donations.