Animal Welfare Professionals

Hello, 

Little Mews Rescue is a small, foster based organization in Lenawee Co, Michigan and there is a serious cat infestation(!) of rural and feral cats, along with home owners not spaying and neutering, that has our organization always operating at a loss financially! We probably take in the most financial benefits from donations, not our adoption fees. We have our fees as reasonable as possible to not barr people from the opportunity to adopt a cat (and similar to that of the well funded Humane Societies). We are working on getting our newly purchased building in shape to operate a "thrift shop" kind of venture to attempt to bring in $ to fund the actual rescue portion of the building. We are constantly relying on goodwill and people volunteering their time to get things into shape, but it always gets sent to the back burner (especially now in the heat of kitten season).  Any suggestions on fundraising opportunities that won't break our bank to host? We are planning a virtual kitten shower, and will likely host another adoption event at PetSmart or Family Farm and Home, but those often don't bring in much financial boost.  I am new to the grant world and have put out feelers and LOI for certain foundations, but no luck as of late. 

I would like to mention that no one at the rescue is a paid employee, and we are being phased out of one PetSmart we are currently in because another rescue wants the space. We do have 5-7 cats in other public locations but we do not get the same foot traffic that a physical building receives. 

#FundraisingandDevelopment

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Jenna Downs
Adoption Coordinator
Little Mews Rescue, Inc
MI
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 Sounds like you've got a good start! A couple of things to keep in mind:

People like to see where their money is going, and everyone LOVES the chance to love on animals. While virtual events/fundraisers can work, in person events (if feasible for the resources you have) can be even better! You could do your Kitten Shower in-person with a silent auction and live kittens there for people to hold. Host a Kitten Yoga event (these have been very popular for us!) Host an event where kids can come and read with the kittens (we have a program called Feline Fan Club every month that is free, but you could definitely turn it into a ticketed event!

It doesn't have to just be on your shoulders. Involve your foster families in your fundraising effort, they're probably just as passionate as you are and can help extend the realm of people you're able to reach! This month we're trying something new with our foster families, where we are having THEM reach out to people for donations, and depending on how much they are able to collect determines what prize they (the foster person) gets. Prizes range from a special foster t-shirt, free coffee, free vaccines for their personal pets, all the way up to a free dental for a personal pet, and more!

You could also try selling merch in support of your organization. Design your own shirts or bags, or have some of your kitties make their own art pieces to sell. I would also recommend reaching out to restaurants in your area and see if any of them are able to help fundraise. Lots of places will designate a day where a certain percent of every purchase is given to your organization. 

There are lots of ways! Be creative, show your passion, and don't be afraid to try different things to see what works best for you! Good luck!

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Riley Bailey
Volunteer/Foster Coordinator
Yellowstone Valley Animal Shelter
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Having been a fund development professional my entire career (45 yrs) I am NOT FOND of special events as they take lots of volunteer time, often financial resources and frequently yield very modest ROI (profit!).  It took our organization 20 years to buy our own building, so if you have the resources to do that, you must have some deep pocket donors or grantors available to help you out!  My advice is to pursue those folks to help you build a "reserve fund" you can use during times when your income is slim.  The other advice is to start a robust grant writing program.  We did that in 2022 and have received over $60K in grants from foundations across the US that we had NO previous relation with until now.  We developed a 5-yr strategic plan to add a new revenue stream each of the next five years.  2023 was grants, 2024 is expanded social media (we qualified for Google Ads for Non-Profits), in 2025 corporate and sponsorships, etc.  Having a strategic plan is like a "track to run on" and keeps your organization focused on what it needs to be doing to grow, thrive and become a "best practice" non profit rescue !  Best of Success!

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Bruce Thorsen
President, Board of Directors
Purrfect Match Cat Rescue
Millington TN
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