Volunteer at the sanctuary How to Volunteer Schedule a sanctuary tour to get an overview of who we are, what we do, and why. Visits must be scheduled during open visiting season and volunteers must have had a scheduled visit within the last nine months. Visit our Visiting page for details on how to schedule a sanctuary tour. Let Judy know you would like to volunteer when you schedule your visit. Volunteer Requirements A sanctuary tour is required before you can volunteer. Please visit our Visiting page for details on how to schedule a sanctuary tour. Because of the time and effort it takes to train people to work safely around rescued animals and sanctuary equipment, we require that volunteers commit to serve for a reasonable amount of time. To be perfectly honest, the one-time or occasional volunteer does not really help us because of the learning curve. It's the regular volunteer who "knows the drill" who provides the most effective help. For important safety reasons, those under age 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Our volunteer jobs are mostly simple but important tasks related to taking care of animals, gardening, and general clean-up. For these kinds of jobs you must be in good shape and not suffer from allergies to animals or hay. Because most of the work on the sanctuary is physical in nature, this is not the right place if you have lower back pain or other similar medical issues. If hands-on sanctuary work is not your cup of tea, we also have a variety of volunteer opportunities of a clerical or technical nature. Some of them may be done from the comfort of your own home. These jobs are just as important as bucking hay or mucking out the barn. What Volunteers do The work needed to be done changes from day to day. Often you will be given one task to perform repeatedly all day long.
Seasonal work may be:
Do you have a specialized skill? We need your help!
Visitor & Volunteer Guidelines You are a guest in the home of many rescued animals in various stages of healing. We want you to enjoy your visit. Ask any questions you want. No subject is out of bounds and no question is dumb. Our goal is to make your visit enjoyable and educational. You will have many good photo opportunities.
Help cleaning and scooping is always needed and requires some training before you are productively at work with the animals. Volunteer training and orientation occur several times a year. New projects that require special skills frequently come up. If you would like to offer a specific talent please let us know. Plumbers, painters, electricians, drywall installers are commonly needed, but we also need those unusual skills: auctioneeer, chimney sweep, gutter installer, fence builder, artist. Whatever your talents are, we can use you so please let us know! If you are interested in volunteering please contact:
I am convinced that my life belongs to the whole community; and as long as I live, it is my privilige to do for it whatever I can, for the harder I work the more I live. — George Bernard Shaw |