Running a charity is never easy, but with the introduction of social isolation and lock down laws across the world, animal charities are really doing it tough.
Even large charities have reported a 90% reduction in income in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, putting many at risk of closure.
Shelters and charities rely heavily on the income from visitors and the labour of temporary volunteers to keep their doors open and their animals fed. And while that help and income has stopped, the need to rescue, feed, and provide veterinary treatment to their animals has not.
If you follow any of these charities on social media, you’ll know how dire the current situation is.
So how can we support charities and shelters, at a time when we may not be able to go outdoors ourselves?
Here are 6 ideas to help you support your preferred charity during lockdown:
1) Make a Donation
Charities and shelters cannot run without financial support, and a lot of this comes from public donations.
You can make a one-off donation to your favourite charity on their website, or for many charities, you can make a long-term impact by becoming a member, or sponsoring an animal. This will come with the added benefit of receiving exclusive emails about your charity or chosen animal, and may have other benefits like event invitations and visitor discounts.
Memberships and sponsorships are also great gifts to request for birthdays!
Many charities will have programs such as these on their website, but here’s a few of my preferred charities that offer them:
- Seal Rescue Ireland Memberships
- Sponsor a Donkey with the Donkey Sanctuary UK
- Memberships for the RSPCA UK, the RSPCA of Australia and the ASPCA in the United States.
- A membership with Fundacio MONA to support primates in Spain
2) Fundraise
If you’re an introvert like me, the word ‘fundraiser’ might make you feel a little uncomfortable. Asking friends and colleagues for money is one of my least favourite things to do, but I’ve actually found a whole range of ways to raise money without relying on the goodwill of your social connections.
Here are some ideas that go beyond the standard ‘Just Giving’ page:
Get Creative
if you have a skills, from painting to crochet, or woodwork to baking, raffle off your marketable goods to raise money for a good cause. You can offer tickets to your friends and family, but you could also ask the charity that you are fundraising for to advertise to their (likely much larger) follower group. For animal lovers particularly, consider painting or drawing pets, knitting dog jumpers, or building a custom kennel or cat house.
And if you don’t have a great skill- work on it! We’re in lockdown after all, so if nothing else, we do have time on our hands.
The Donkey Sanctuary encourages their supporters to knit, crochet or sew mini donkeys to be sold in their charity shop, and provides free patterns to volunteers. There’s no better excuse to take up a new hobby!
Recycle for a Cause
Some charities raise money through recycling goods. You can get involved yourself, and encourage your friends to help as well. Here’s a few examples:
- Animal SOS benefits when you recycle ink cartridges
- SSPCA in Scotland want your cars, stamps, jewellery and electronics to raise funds
- The ASPCA in the United States will recycle your vehicle for free (they even take boats and RVs)
- Many Tears Animal Rescue in Wales is collecting old gold and silver jewellery as a fundraiser.
- Kangaloola Wildlife Shelter is collecting spare veterinary and medical supplies for their orphaned marsupials.
- Charity shops want your good quality clothes and furniture. Lock down is a great excuse to spring clean some of those old cupboards and garages for unwanted items- but keep in mind you may need to store your donations at home until the shops re-open.
- Many Ways to Help Animals.com has even more recycling ideas.
Sign-Up for Online Shopping Partnerships.
This is one that everyone can do! Many charities take part in online shopping partnership programs, where they receive a small donation when you make a purchase online. It doesn’t affect the prices that you pay, and you’ll find hundreds of well-known brands that take part in the program (including fashion brands, electronics and even airlines). Check out easy Help Freely and Easy Charity and nominate the charity of your choice.
Join Doggy Lottery
Many Tears Animal Rescue in Wales holds a monthly dog lottery, where proceeds are split between their shelter and a number of other canine charities each month. A £2 donation buys you a raffle ticket and a vote on where the donations should go. Its a simple way to support a heap of great causes at once.
Shop For Online Gifts
Finally, if you do need to buy gifts or new things, take a good look at the online charity stores before you do so. Just be aware that some charities will not be able to post your purchases until their staff are able to return to work.
3) Reach out to Local Charities
The best way to know how to help your local charities is to ask them directly! And if you’re a local, there may be some ways you can volunteer to help a charity without breaking social distancing recommendations.
Get in touch with your local charity directly (but not in person) and offer your help, whether that be with with transport of goods or animals, purchasing supplies they are short on, or answering phones. Limited charities are still in need of volunteers to help clean kennels and assist in manual tasks, and in larger shelters this may be possible while maintaining social distancing.
If nothing else, you could ask if you can bring a tray of baking as a pick-me-up for their volunteers.
But be aware that you must not show up unannounced, or ignore the current government advice- as this would do more harm than good.
4) Reach out to International Charities
Just because you can’t visit an international charity, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you can’t help them.
Email charities that are further afield and ask how you could volunteer for them remotely. Consider the skills that you have already, and how you could apply them. For example, you could help managing a social media page or answering their email enquiries. Perhaps you have skills in web design, data analysis, letter writing or editing. If you’re a veterinary professional, you could ask if they need help with writing treatment or handling protocols.
There are a lot of ways to help remotely, so its always worth reaching out.
5) Foster an Animal
A pandemic is not a great time to adopt an animal, however some shelters are looking for temporary foster carers. Reach out to see if you can bring a furry companion into your home to take some pressure of the shelter workers, while benefiting your mental health in the process.
6) Educate your Peers
Finally, combat the spread of misinformation online. Remind your followers that the COVID-19 virus cannot be transmitted by pets, and that there is no reason to dump your animal. Also encourage responsible pet ownership, like keeping dogs on leads, and keeping collars on pets with the owner’s contact details. These actions can help to keep pressure off your local shelter staff, and prevent more animals ending up in shelters.
Also, you can use social media for good to share the plight of the charities doing it tough and encourage donations.
Further Information
Thanks for reading!
If you’re part of a charitable organisation and would like to spread the word about other ways supporters can support you at this time, please get in touch using the contact me form.
If you’d like to read more tips and reviews about volunteering with charities internationally, start your research on the Volunteering Page.
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