Cat Corner

Ways To Help Animals Without Spending or Adopting

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Many people are animal lovers and want to help, but they don’t have the space to adopt or the extra funds to sponsor an animal, so what do you do?

Surprisingly there are a variety of different ways that you can help animals and charities without that extra commitment. It’s a great way to feel warm and fuzzy inside because you can help one of the many thousands of animals in need, but in a way that suits you too! It’s a win, win and charities are always looking for people to help.

For me, animals are a huge part of my life and if I had all the money in the world I would probably have my own shelter and take in all the abandoned and unwanted. Unfortunately, I have neither the funds or the space to do it so I have to settle for other ways to do my part. So here are some ways you can help animals without spending money, regardless of your time commitment that isn’t as much effort as you think!

Educate Yourself on Brands

You would be surprised to learn how many big names still test on animals and many of them are household favourites that you hadn’t considered. Avoiding these brands helps to send a message to the industry and avoids contributing to the problem. Avoiding these types of brands doesn’t have to put you without your favourite products however as there are plenty of cruelty-free alternatives!

Here is a fabulously inclusive list of Brands That Still Test On Animals from Cruelty-Free Kitty

and some Cruelty-Free Alternative Brands to try out.

Volunteering

The more obvious solution because if you can’t donate money, then why not donate time?! That being said, not everyone is able to make it down to their local shelter to muck out. There are plenty of other options you can try including distance volunteering which is something I do with my spare time! (learn more about my Volunteer’s View of Cats Protection).

Another option is volunteering your unique services, for example, if you are a photographer you could spend a couple of hours per week or month, photographing the animals and getting their best side for the website or publications to make them look more adoption-worthy! As an IT or marketing expert, you could offer free services to help with online advocacy and improve website navigation and usability making it easier to search for adopted animals online. Don’t feel like you have to do the traditional volunteering if you aren’t able, there is always something for everyone!

Volunteering also doesn’t have to be a permanent thing, many charities run family or corporate days so a large group of you go in and perform a variety of tasks to help with a backlog or merely pitch in for the day to take some of the pressure off and these can be excellent team building or family bonding exercises.

Petitions

It may seem silly but petitions and getting involved can make a powerful impact and cause pressure to make changes! Unity is important when it comes to changing large industries and it is something quick and easy you can do from your desk or phone at work or during your lunch break! If you think that signing a petition isn’t worth it, look at the 14-year-old Lucy Gavaghan who fought Tesco and won using petitions to stop them selling eggs from caged hens due to their unethical treatment. Your signature matters!

Advocacy

What part of animal care are you passionate about? I advocate for owners to neuter their pets (here’s why) and I use the platforms that I have to speak about them and try to be informative. You can do the same, whether it is about animal testing, food production, animal adoption, dog fighting or the number of other issues that need to be discussed and identified, become an advocate, educate yourself and start discussions with others.

Social Shares

If you see lost animals or those up for adoption (from reputable sites) share them on your social media channels, it takes two seconds and expands their reach. Sharing petitions you have signed on social media can also help them gain traction and increase awareness, why do you think social media marketing is such a big industry? Because of you and me making an impact. Consider if you have 100 friends, you share it and they see it. Even if only 5 of your friends also share it, that could be potentially 500 more that would see and become aware of an issue, and so on and so forth. Social media is a powerful tool so don’t underestimate yourself.

Plus, you never know who you might reach, your next door neighbour could be looking for a new cat or dog but haven’t found one yet and voila you could be the catalyst to a new animal finding its forever home!

*A word of warning, be careful about sharing animals “for sale” from social media sites because these are usually not reputable sources and should be discouraged. Also, some users may find graphic images disturbing and therefore not want them coming up on their newsfeed so always be mindful of what you choose to share and show.

Fostering

For those who like the idea of having an animal but don’t want (or can’t give) the long-term commitment, fostering could be the way forward. I interviewed Heather from the Toronto Cat Rescue on her role of a fosterer if you want more information or for cat lovers in the UK, watch this video from Cats Protection to see if you want to learn more!

Fundraising

We all know about the traditional fundraising methods that involve raising money for charities, from bake sales to sponsored sports in some cases it is the only thing can keep some shelters afloat. That being said, it can be a lot to constantly ask friends and family for funds (especially if you don’t have many!) but fundraising doesn’t stop there!

It’s not always about the money and you can fundraise other items that can be just as helpful;

Leftover animal food
Blankets for the winter
Cleaning products
and even silly things like newspapers and plastic bags that can be used for smaller animal hutches and lining cages helps.

Anything that you can donate can be helpful because it saves a shelter or charity from needing to buy them itself!

Get Creative

For creative types, it offers the perfect opportunities to do something you love and help animals at the same time! Making toys, beds and blankets for animals in need can brighten their day and be donated to local shelters! You don’t even have to buy materials, old clothes that people donate or you no longer need can be sewn and turned into pillows and blankets or even makeshift toys!

For the knitters – Here is the knitting pattern for “Captain Cat Battler, The Catnip Mouse”

Alternatively, you can check out my 11 Fun & Frugal DIY Cat Toys post for more ideas on some makeshift fun!