Perhaps you added volunteering or giving back to the community to your 2019 resolutions. Maybe you just want to be around pets more, or you are looking for productive ways to use your extra time. It’s possible you have some extra income and you’re looking to donate to a charity in need this year. Whatever the reason is, we’ve got some amazing organizations in the southeast Michigan area for pet owners and pet lovers and there are a handful of ways to give back for each of them! Every hour that you spend helping these organizations goes directly into saving pet lives, and in turn making somebody’s world, and our world as a whole, better and more loving. What more could you ask for?
Our team here at Wags to Wiskers has a few local favorites when it comes to pet-based non-profits, and we are always looking to build on these partnerships and add more! If you’ve got suggestions for non-profits we should partner with, please reach out to us through our submission form or drop by your local Wags to Wiskers Pet Supplies in Ann Arbor (2425 W. Stadium Blvd, Ann Arbor, MI, 48103) or Chelsea (1192 S. Main St, Chelsea, MI, 48118)! We’d love to hear from you.
Our team at Wags to Wiskers Pet Supplies has the deepest respect and appreciation for those who volunteer their time to help pets in need, and it’s hard to go wrong. As it’s relevant, let’s start with our friends at Crafty Cat Rescue!
Crafty Cat Rescue
Crafty Cat Rescue is a no kill refuge for stray, abused, and neglected animals. Through the use of foster housing in the Ann Arbor Michigan area, Crafty Cat can shelter between 50-75 cats, as well as a limited number of other small pets.
We consistently work with and hold cat adoption events with Crafty Cat Rescue at one of our locations. We currently have an event scheduled this coming weekend on Sunday, January 20th. Check out our event page for more information.
Like many volunteer organizations, Crafty Cat is always looking for more volunteers! Unfortunately, as they are foster based they don’t have a specific location to volunteer at (yet), but still provide lots of ways you can volunteer to help the animals! For example, you can work at events, foster a cat, make toys/blankets/other supplies, and participate in fundraising. Feel free to reach out today at info@craftycatrescue.org to get more details.
One campaign we want to highlight is the Capital Campaign. Crafty Cat Rescue is working on plans to build a brand new no-kill facility. This facility would allow them to house over twice the amount of animals the current foster base can, as well as open them up to more volunteers, more adopters, and more adoptions! You or your business can donate, fundraise, or volunteer to help out.
The proposed building would allow Crafty Cat Rescue to increase their adoption potential by 400% – from about 300 animals per year to about 1200 animals per year! Here are some things they could really use: Construction Workers, Electricians, Plumbers, Lawyers, Veterinarians, Certified HVAC Consultants/Workers, Grant Writers, and many other skill sets (let us know what you can do!)
Lastly, Crafty Cat could also use volunteers to prepare mailers, talk to people at events, spread the word with family and friends, hang up fliers, and in general be a positive brand ambassador (like Wags!).
Interested in lending a paw to volunteer? Fill out an application form on their website!
Everybody knows about the Humane Society, but at Wags we feel that our friends over at the Huron Valley organization do an exceptional job in a handful of ways. We recently held a holiday photoshoot that gathered some donations for them and they were incredibly helpful in assisting with that through promotion to their network. The HSHV has strong systems and dedicated personnel that make working with them such a joy.
For more than 120 years, the Humane Society of Huron Valley has been serving the community, saving animals and helping people. HSHV is still the only animal shelter in Washtenaw County, taking in all types of unwanted, injured, lost, stray, abandoned, and abused animals. Today, they help over 14,000 animals and their people every year! The numbers don’t lie - we are dealing with some superstars over at the HSHV!
There are a ton of ways to help the Humane Society of Huron Valley: volunteering, donating, fundraising, fostering, advocating, sponsoring, purchasing, reporting, attending events, and of course adopting! They provide orientation, training, access to resources (and pets in need), and in due time you can get on the list for the famous Love Train! The website also has a LOT of information on anything and everything you’d need to know, including FAQ. Check it out.
Want to help out at the Humane Society of Huron Valley? Apply below!
Last but not least, our team at Wags to Wiskers Pet Supplies donates to Dog Aide pretty regularly. Dog Aide's mission is to provide assistance to dog owners in the City of Detroit that are experiencing financial hardship through a Community Outreach program designed to provide dog food, daily care items, education on proper pet care, and assistance with free spay/neuter services. We love Dog Aide!
As they are still going through the data from 2018, let’s check in on their numbers from 2017!
106,800 meals provided
1,042 visits to homes in Detroit
108 visits to new clients
1,242 calls for assistance
44,500 pounds of food distributed
Tangible, quantifiable numbers are great, but the lives they’ve touched is impossible to put into data sets.
Volunteer duties range from, but are not limited to: hands-on involvement in the community educating owners on how to best care for their pets; delivering food and supplies; responding to calls for assistance that come in to our help line and email; scheduling & transporting dogs to their appointments; management of social media accounts; and training & supporting our volunteer teams.
As you can tell, there’s a pretty diverse range of ways to help an organization like Dog Aide and they’re constantly on the lookouts for new skills and new partners to continue to increase their impact in southeast Michigan.
Other ways you can help of course include donating, shopping, and attending events. These can be done on their website, and information for future events will be there as well. Want to get involved? Reach out today!
💛💜 THANK YOU! 💜💛
Do you have any other organizations that deserve a shout out or your volunteering time? Have any memorable, great experiences working for either these or other organizations? Let us know by commenting below! A HUGE thank you to everything these organizations do! We appreciate you.