Opportunities
Photo by Elisa McEntee
Please direct any volunteering inquiries to our Volunteer Manager Cristina Verduzco: volunteer@berkeleyhumane.org, or 510-845-3633 ext. 26
Volunteers are the backbone of many non-profit animal rescue organizations such as ours. Your contribution is vital for the health and well-being of the wonderful animals we shelter. The love and care our animals receive from volunteers will contribute to their success with the families that adopt them. We look forward to your involvement as a BEBHS volunteer!
Youth volunteers aged 10-17 are welcome to volunteer with involvement from a parent/guardian. Youth 10-15 years of age must volunteer with a parent/guardian on a 1:1 ratio at all times. Young adults over 16 may volunteer independently once they have gone through all of the required training with their guardian and have been approved by staff.
Shelter Support
All incoming volunteers must be trained for this position before going on to any of the animals handling positions. Our Shelter Support volunteers assist with daily shelter operations such as cleaning, washing laundry and dishes, preparing foster supplies, working on classical conditioning and kennel enrichment with the cats and dogs, and organizing supplies. Once you are trained and scheduled to work with the animals, our hope is that you will incorporate shelter tasks into your routine so that we are all contributing to maintaining optimal shelter standards.
Materials: Apron (available for purchase for $9.99), name tag (provided). Must be worn at all times while volunteering!
Adoption Support
Our Adoption Support volunteers help facilitate cat care and adoptions during weekend adoption hours by welcoming adopters to the cat housing areas, supervising and facilitating customer-cat interactions, and showing the binder of available dogs! Other duties include: collecting incoming in-kind donations and providing receipts, answering phones, running adoption paperwork, tidying up adoption area, assisting in general cleaning, assist staff in facilitating adoptions as needed, cleaning cat adoption rooms and supplies, helping arriving cats get settled into adoption rooms, answering general questions about cat care, helping potential adopters identify appropriate candidate cats, relaying complete and accurate information to paid adoptions staff, spot cleaning cat housing areas, and helping send cats back to foster after adoption hours.
Shifts: 2 hour shifts available from 10am to 6pm on Saturdays and Sundays only!
Training: Volunteer Information Session, Shelter Support training, and a 1-hour Adoption Support training with our Cat Coordinator Cathy Marden.
Commitment: 1 shift weekly for 6 months
Canine Friend
Provide our shelter dogs with potty breaks, walks for exercise and socialization, and kennel enrichment so that they remain happy and healthy while in our care and become more adoptable! Other duties include: housebreaking, maintaining clean kennels, assisting clients as needed, re-stocking supplies, food prep, dishes, supervising playgroups and small dog adoption area, noting any behavioral or medical concerns and reporting them to staff, indicating which dogs have been walked during your shift.
Shifts: 7-9am, 10-12pm, 12-2pm, 2-4pm, 4-6pm
Training: Volunteer Information Session, Shelter Support Training, and a 2-hour Canine Friends training
Requirements: Ability to handle dogs of varying sizes, temperaments and training levels. Ability to comfortably lift up to 40 lbs. You must be physically agile and be able to respond quickly. Some familiarity with canine body language is prefered.
Commitment: 1 shift weekly for 6 months
Veterinary Spay/Neuter Clinic Assistant
Veterinary Spay/Neuter Clinic Assistants help the veterinary staff with daily clinic duties. This position is fast-paced and requires a volunteer with some background in the animal medical field who learns quickly.
This position has varying levels of animal contact, and can be informative for those considering a career in the field of veterinary medicine.
Duties: cleaning and wrapping surgical instruments; cleaning the prep and surgery rooms in the clinic; cleaning cages and animal habitats; patient recovery; laundry; sweeping and mopping; safe handling of animals.
Shifts:
Tuesdays from 10am-3pm (reserved for individuals with veterinary assistance experience)
Tuesdays from 3pm to 6:30pm (entry-level)
Commitment: 1 shift weekly for 6 months
Materials: scrubs if possible
Contact Jehn Mikalacki, RVT at jmikalacki@berkeleyhumane.org
