Love dogs and want to make a difference?

Worthy Dog Rescue is growing, and we’re looking for new people to join our local team. We are an all-volunteer, non-profit dog rescue run by regular people just like you who love animals. Some of us have twenty years of experience working in rescue and some of us are brand new, but what we have in common is our love for dogs and a passion to help improve their lives.

Our mission is to provide a better life for abused, neglected, and abandoned dogs, especially those living on chains or in confinement. We partner with Worthy Dog volunteers working on the ground in underserved areas of Virginia and the Carolinas to rescue dogs from bad situations, then bring them to the DC area to recuperate in one of our local foster homes. Our foster families open their homes to these deserving dogs to provide them with TLC, stability, and some respite from their previous life until we can find their new family.

Tragically, nearly 4 million unwanted animals are euthanized every year in the US. These are healthy, adoptable pets whose only fault is that they don’t have a place to call home. There is so much more to do, and we need your help! The more volunteers we have working towards the same goal, the more dogs we can save, and the more people we can educate in the process. Just a few hours out of your week will make a tangible difference, and seeing your work change a dog’s life while bringing joy to a family is incredibly rewarding.

If you love dogs and want to make are real difference, there are plenty of ways to get involved. Even if you’ve never worked with a rescue before, we’re here to support and train you, so take a look at some of the volunteer opportunities below, and fill out this Volunteer Form to learn more.

APPLICATION SCREENERS
Like to chat? Volunteer to help screen potential adopters from the comfort of your own home. You dictate the schedule and set up phone interviews with potential adopters to discuss their adoption application, and get insight on the adopters, their lifestyle, and the types of dogs they’re interested in. You will be their first point of contact with the rescue, and the insight you gain will help us understand the type of dog who will best suit their home.

HOME VISIT TEAM
Visit potential adopters in your local community to ensure their home is a beneficial environment for one of our rescue dogs. You control when and where you want to volunteer, and can choose to be part-time or a regular contributor. After contacting already-screened applicants to set up a time to drop by their home, you will look for things like fenced yards and sleeping arrangements, and discuss their readiness for taking on a new dog. We need home visit volunteers from all over the DC metro area.

FOSTERING
Provide a temporary, loving home for a recently rescued dog until a permanent adopter can be found. Fostering is the backbone of rescue, and we can only save as many dogs as we have foster homes to take them in. This is a very important and gratifying role that offers direct interaction with dogs, and often a critical role in their rehabilitation. You can do short and long term fostering, and we will work with you to find a foster dog that fits with your home and lifestyle. We can never have enough fosters.

FUNDRAISING
We rely on donations to operate, and need volunteers with fundraising savvy who can help us develop creative campaigns to raise our profile in the community and encourage giving to continue our mission. If you have ideas you want to discuss or experience planning events, we’d love to talk with you.

PHOTOGRAPHY
Great pictures have a very powerful ability to attract adopters to the dogs we save. This matters because the sooner they’re adopted, the sooner we can save another dog. If you have a good camera and a good eye, and want to take pictures of the sometimes uncooperative subjects coming into the rescue, we need you!

EVENTS
Pet supply stores can provide us with space on the weekends to showcase some of our adoptable dogs to the public, and we need outgoing people to set up and manage adoption events to talk to people about rescue and encourage them to apply for some of our dogs up for adoption. We also have special fundraising events throughout the year that are fun and great for people who just want to get involved and can help with whatever comes up.

Helping to save dogs’ lives is a great thing to do and personally rewarding. Join us! Fill out this Volunteer Form to learn more.

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