Volunteer
Do you have some spare time ? If so would you like to help with:-
- Walking dogs – We need volunteers to walk our dogs, play with them in our dog parks, cuddle them and make them feel loved and maybe even teach them a couple of basic orders!
- Grooming – If you have grooming skills we always have dogs who need anything from a brush to a short back and sides!!
- Taking photos – We need photos of our cats and dogs to keep our websites up to date.
- Fundraising – Help is always needed at our fundraising events. Could you put up posters? We also need help with organising events so f you’d like to hold your own event for us we would like to hear from you.
- Play with the cats – we have well over 100 cats who are desperate for fun and attention!
Fostering
Where possible we prefer to place some of our rescue dogs in foster homes which enables us to assess how they react to different situations and work on their house- training and socialisation where required. This also makes the transition for dogs much less stressful when they are finally adopted and gives adopters more confidence as to the character of their new family member.
We have a network of foster carers but we are always in need of more.
As a fosterer you will play an extremely valuable role in reintegrating our dogs into a normal loving family environment. In our experience rescue dogs have a much smoother transition into their permanent homes if they have received care and rehabilitation from a committed foster home.
We can supply fosterers with dog food, bedding, bowls collars/leads etc, and all vet treatments are covered, providing you live in Carcassonne or near enough to visit our vet..
It’s getting cold now and the winter is especially hard on our young pups and older dogs. We would love to get them out of kennels by winter time.
If you think you would like to help please contact me and we can arrange for you to meet us and some of our lovely dogs.
Donations
SPA Carcassonne receives no state funding and relies on donations, without which we could not continue to provide a decent standard of care for our animals. Donations can be one-off gifts or regular payments.
There are different ways to donate:
- Donate online – This can be done through via Paypal by the button below or to the SPA bank account (please ask for details)
- Send us a cheque
- Cash
- A regular monthly payment, Simply decide how much you can afford and we will help you set this up.
- Legacies – if you are considering leaving us some money in your will please ask to speak to our treasurer about this. She will ensure that this is done in the most tax efficient way.
NB For donations other than by Paypal a receipt can be provided, which can be offset against your French tax liability!
How to Sponsor A Dog
SPA Carcassonne is reliant on the generosity of the public to help our animals in need, so by sponsoring a dog you won’t just be helping your sponsor dog but all their friends too.
You can sponsor any dog from our website or facebook page and we can keep you updated on their process and send you photo updates too!
You can do this in any of the following ways:
- A one-off donation which can be used to spay/neuter the dog or pay towards their adoption fees. This gives them a much better chance of being adopted.
- A regular monthly payment.
- A new collar and lead.
- A scalibor collar or flea treatment.
- A new toy/blanket/bedding
You are of course welcome to visit, play with or walk your sponsor dog.
Other Ways To Help
Photos – Do you have a digital camera? Why not come and take photos of the animals in need of homes and send them into rescue forums to be listed.
Put your creative writing skills to work, and write up a description of the animal that will help attract attention to them. Doing this on a regular basis means the group always has a window on the world, whether posting on a website site, or having photos available to run in local papers, etc..
Use your day job skills – what are your skills that you apply in your day job… publicity, writing, IT, organisational, graphics, printing? Think about how you can apply these to help the group. For example, if you are good at publicity, help the group get coverage in the media outlets.
If you are a groomer – volunteer your services.
Does your company make charitable donations, or do they sponsor community work? Does your company produce or sells items that could be of value to a group, or would make a good raffle item?
Are you a teacher? Can you help us educate the next generation on things like the need for sterilisation of domestic animals and help to eradicate animal cruelty and abandonment.
Make/repair things — Are you clever with your hands, can you do DIY? Perhaps you could help with repairs around the centre, building kennels, mowing the lawn and tending the outside areas
Source and supply ongoing needed items – such as blankets, bowls collars, leads, baskets, etc. Pick up many of these items charity shops and boot sales. We also accept unneeded dog medicines.
Transport – Do you have a car? Could you offer your to transport a dog to their forever home or do the first leg or a much longer journey?
Bring speciality items for their special-need residents – such as premium or restricted-diet dog food and cat food, or specialty items the group can’t really afford to buy themselves, such as chicken, tins of sardine, etc, quality sleeping cushions and baskets, etc. for the residents who need TLC.
Support fundraising efforts – Purchase anything the SPA is are selling, buy raffle tickets, attend events, go to the boot sales. When you see a call for items needed for upcoming events try to provide them (bric-a-brac, raffle items, etc.). Or simply put some money into a SPA Charity box!