Volunteer

Change a Cat’s Life

Every cat who finds safety, care, and a loving home at Pet Haven has a team of dedicated volunteers behind them.

Whether you're socializing shy cats, helping families meet their new companions, assisting at events, or sharing our mission online, your time makes a direct impact on the lives of cats throughout the Treasure Valley.

Join our volunteer team and help create more happy endings.

Volunteer Application

Why Volunteer?

Volunteers Make Our Mission Possible

Pet Haven has been helping cats since 1972, providing shelter, adoption services, spay/neuter assistance, and compassionate care for cats in need. As a nonprofit organization that relies on community support, volunteers are essential to everything we do.

When you volunteer, you help:

  • Care for cats awaiting adoption

  • Create positive experiences for visitors and adopters

  • Support community events and outreach

  • Expand Pet Haven's impact throughout the Treasure Valley

  • Give vulnerable cats the attention and enrichment they deserve

Volunteer Opportunities

  • One of the most important and rewarding things a volunteer can do is to help socialize our cats.

    Socializing is all about helping the cats be their best selves in front of potential adopters, so they can find a forever home as quickly as possible.

    For all cats, coming into a shelter is a stressful experience. Without socializing, they can become scared and depressed, making it even harder for them to find homes.

    But a cat that feels safe, loved, and happy will be relaxed, playful, and let their personality shine through, making it more likely they’ll be adopted quickly!

    For some cats (particularly kittens), this comes naturally. But many cats are shy and need your help to feel safe and confident. Others have been through trauma, and require a great deal of patience and compassion to become adoptable. And some are aggressive, making them unapproachable until they’ve been socialized.

    The good news is that volunteers like you can make a HUGE impact in these cats’ lives! You will be the best part of their day, giving them love and happiness while they wait for their forever family to find them. It’s incredibly rewarding!

  • Assist visitors, answer questions, and help potential adopters connect with the right feline companion.

  • Be the friendly face that welcomes visitors, answers phones, and helps create a positive experience for everyone who walks through our doors.

  • Represent Pet Haven at adoption events, fundraisers, and community activities while helping spread awareness about our mission.

  • Use your creative talents to showcase adoptable cats, tell success stories, and help more people discover Pet Haven.

  • Have experience in construction, maintenance, administration, fundraising, graphic design, photography, or another specialty? We'd love to learn how your skills can support our mission.

  • Our staff does an excellent job of providing a clean environment for our cats and guests. However, with so many cats in our care, cleaning never ends. Help from our volunteers is greatly appreciated!

    Cats, especially kittens, can be quite creative in making messes. Whether it’s accidentally spilling their litter box, dunking their blankets in the water dish, or heaving up a furball, a lot can happen throughout the day. Volunteers help us keep up with these events by either taking care of them themselves, or alerting the staff.

    Apart from making the cats more comfortable and the shelter more inviting to guests, this volunteer vigilance is a crucial part of keeping our cats healthy. Even the calmest shelter can be a stressful environment for cats, and that stress can make them susceptible to illness. By staying on top of the messes and accidents that happen throughout the day, volunteers help keep the cats healthy and happy, which makes them more likely to be adopted.

  • Please consider taking time and space in your home to care for cats and kittens that aren’t quite ready to come into the shelter. This often means bottle fed kittens, injured or recovering cats, and sometimes involves working with more behaviorally complicated cats depending on your interest and availability. We always have a need for fosters.

    All supplies will be provided by Pet Haven as needed. Please note that fostered cats must be returned to Pet Haven after the foster has finished so they may be formally adopted. Failure to submit cats back into our care will result in a removal from the foster program.  

  • Attend board meetings and participate in activities to manage Pet Haven's affairs and property and promote its welfare. Position availability depends on board vacancies.

  • Follow us on Facebook and Instagram, and share posts with cat lovers!

Volunteer Requirements

To ensure a safe and successful experience for both volunteers and cats, volunteers should:

  • Be dependable and committed to Pet Haven's mission

  • Treat animals, visitors, and fellow volunteers with kindness and respect

  • Follow shelter policies and training guidelines

  • Be comfortable working around cats and cat-related cleaning tasks

  • Complete any required orientation or training before volunteering independently

Your Questions, Answered

  • No. Many volunteer roles require only a love of cats and a willingness to learn.

  • We offer opportunities with varying schedules and time commitments. Talk with us about how to incorppate volunteering into your schedule!

  • Volunteers age 13 and younger must be accompanied by a guardian.

  • We welcome inquiries from businesses, community organizations, and civic groups interested in supporting Pet Haven.

  • If you are looking to serve court-mandated community service, please sign up here. You will need to check in with staff to continue paperwork on your first day.

  • Collaborative, honest, and straightforward. We're here to guide the process, bring ideas to the table, and keep things moving.