11 Animal Shelter Fundraiser Ideas That Are The Cat’s Meow

Employee pay, pet care, pet food, building overhead, and more add up for animal shelters. It costs about $2 billion a year to cover the costs of caring for animals in US shelters. Pet adoption fees alone cannot cover these costs. To help cover the costs of caring for animals in shelters, fundraising is oftentimes necessary. Here are 11 unique animal shelter fundraiser ideas that can bring in plenty of donations to save innocent animals.

Check out the following fundraising ideas that can fund shelter services to help pets find their forever home.

Pet owners love showing off their furry friends. Why not make that a competition, and rake in donations while doing it? Pet parents can submit their pets into the competition for a small fee, and people online can vote for their favorites. What’s especially great about these contests is that it’s easy to share them on social media, helping generate wider community interest in not just the contest, but your shelter too.

Looking at pet photos doesn’t have to be a competition. Many pet parents today are happy to get high-quality photos of their best friends, so why not set up a pet photo shoot? This unique fundraising opportunity requires a place to host the shoot, some great backdrops, and professional photography equipment.

You can either charge a flat rate for each photo session or you can ask people to donate what they can.

It’s like a walk-a-thon… but for dogs! This in-person event has people (and their dogs) pledge to walk a certain amount. For every amount pledged, sponsors agree to donate a certain amount of money to your shelter. Sponsorships aren’t the only way to meet (and even exceed) your fundraising goals, however. You can also sell event t-shirts and concessions.

Everyone loves watching cute and funny animals. Host a pet talent show (and don’t limit it to cats or dogs, either!). You can have contestants pay a small entry fee to compete or you can charge spectators and entrance fee (or both).

If you’re short on time and money, boost your fundraising efforts with a tried-and-true event: a 50/50 raffle. Sell tickets at the entrance of your shelter, and have half the proceeds go to your overhead costs. You may be surprised by people’s generosity; many winners donate their half of the raffle back to the nonprofit event host.

People aren’t the only ones who enjoy tasty treats; Fido and Fluffy do too. Add a fun twist to the traditional bake sale fundraiser and make it pet-friendly. Sell baked goods that are safe for cats and dogs (and maybe their humans too, so long as you properly label everything).

In-person events are fun and raise plenty of money. But they’re also one-time events. Set up an online fundraising page on your shelter’s website so that people can donate at any time, not just during a single event.

Get the local community excited with a pet fashion show. Have people dress up their best friends and let spectators vote on their favorite. You can raise money by having both contestants and the audience pay entry fees.

If you have enough participants, you can even split the event into categories based on animal types, like reptiles, birds, cats, and dogs.

Host a pet-themed silent auction that features pet-related items. You can provide the items yourselves or ask for donations from local businesses.

Animal lovers will absolutely jump at the opportunity to get a cute cuddly calendar that features adoptable pets in your shelter. Snap the cutest photos of adoptable animals in your shelter, write a cute bio on them, and add them to your calendar. If you’re lucky, you may not only raise funds, but encourage people to adopt the animals featured in the calendar!

• People sponsor a brick or tile and customize it to their hearts’ content. For an animal organization, you can encourage donors to dedicate bricks in memory of beloved pets.
• We use a cutting-edge, laser-engraving process to craft each brick and tile.
• You use the bricks in an installation near your organization, like a walkway or wall.

We’ve helped nonprofit organizations like zoos and more raise money to help save animals. We can do the same for your organization too. From laser-engraving the bricks to providing you customizable poster templates to setting up online donation forms and more, we are with you every step of the way.

Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you use bricks for the best animal fundraiser ever.