On a recent Community Conversations call, Return to Owner (RTO) expert, Gina Knepp, posed the question, “What if we call RTO something else?”   When we make changes to the names of our organizations and programs, or shift the language that we use in messaging, there can be a transformational effect. By simply changing our own terminology, there… Learn More

This year has been a year unlike any other with historic levels of foster and adoptions from shelters. Our animals, whether permanent residents or just passing through as foster pets, have served as plus ones to Zoom happy hours, provided much needed companionship and entertainment in this unusual year. Let’s honor our pets with Celebrate… Learn More

Could your organization use some extra marketing help, for free? If you haven’t heard of HeARTs Speak, look no further. HeARTs Speak is a nonprofit organization whose work shines a light on animals in need and improves adoption rates by increasing the marketing capacity of time-stretched, under-resourced organizations. They offer free design tools, plug ‘n play photo… Learn More

Maddie’s® Foster Express Challenge called on participating shelters to focus on short-term fostering to help get more dogs and cats out of the shelter during the hectic holiday season, get them more exposure and attract new foster caregivers. We’ll be sharing exclusive interviews on Maddie’s Pet Forum as well as on the blog with several of… Learn More

Sometimes even the goofiest or tiniest incentive can get a donor to open up their pocket book. You might be surprised how quickly donations can add up. The best part is, you can enlist your volunteers to help with many of them! During the webcast Million Cat Challenge webcast, Flattening the kitten curve while spay/neuter is… Learn More

With more people stepping up to provide foster homes for pets, marketing foster pets from their homes has never been so important. Some shelter and rescue organizations are still conducting adoptions virtually with a socially-distanced handoff, so being able to capture a pets’ personality through photos, video and words is key. Our new Maddie’s® University… Learn More

Is your animal shelter trying to recruit foster caregivers among the COVID-19 chaos? The Shelter Pet Project has created some light-hearted graphics to help you do just that. Feel free to use the graphics below on your social platforms to spread the word about fostering. (Just right-click, save to your device and then upload to… Learn More

Emergency foster care is a critical tool for organizations in crisis.  It can increase an organization’s capacity, reduce strain on staff and help them better care for animals. It can be implemented by organizations in crisis and by those helping these organizations. Whether you’re a government shelter or a rescue organization, emergency foster care can… Learn More

Pets are one of the best (if not the best) parts of the internet, so why not shout it from the rooftops how much you love them? Today’s the perfect day to do it – it’s Celebrate Shelter Pets Day! This year marks the 10th anniversary of Celebrate Shelter Pets Day. Started in 2009 by The… Learn More

Instead of hitting the mall the Friday after Thanksgiving (also known as Black Friday), why don’t you stay home or hit the park with your pet? We affectionately refer to this day as #PetFriday, which we declared back in 2015, after being inspired by REI’s #OptOutside campaign.   So what will you do with your best pal? Eat… Learn More