Thank you for considering volunteering at Heartland Animal Shelter!

PLEASE READ: Due to concerns surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak, all new volunteer orientations and trainings are suspended until further notice. Please do not submit a volunteer application at this time but instead, check back again soon or sign up for our newsletter on the homepage to receive the latest updates.

To become a volunteer, you must first fill out a Volunteer Application and then either:

• Attend an in-person orientation in our training hall
  OR
• Complete an online orientation and assessment (a link with the option to complete online orientation will be emailed to you after submitting your Volunteer Application)

The next in-person volunteer orientation dates are:

• Saturday, March 28th at 4:15 p.m. – CANCELLED
• Saturday, April 25th at 4:15 p.m. – CANCELLED
• Saturday, May 30th at 4:15 p.m.
• Saturday, June 27th at 4:15 p.m.

In-person volunteer orientation sessions last for 45-60 minutes and are typically the last Saturday of each month, except where noted otherwise. Advance registration is not required to attend a new volunteer orientation session, please just come to Heartland Animal Shelter during one of the above listed times. For questions regarding the orientation, please email us.

Important note for prospective dog walkers:

Due to the high volume of individuals who are looking to walk dogs and our limited ability to keep up with demand to train each new dog walker in a timely manner, we are currently only accepting dog walkers who meet the following requirements:

• Have weekday morning or weekend evening availability
• Have experience walking and handling large dogs
• Are able to consistently commit to a minimum of two hours per week on a shift in need

All shelter volunteers must be at least 16 years of age and those under 18 years of age will be required to attend the in-person orientation with a parent or legal guardian who will sign a Waiver and Release of Liability for the child volunteer. Minors ages 16 and 17 cannot complete their new volunteer orientation online.

If you are assigned court-ordered community service or are with a corporate or community group, please contact the Volunteer Coordinator for more information on available opportunities.

Please read about all the volunteer opportunities we have available!