The Animal Rescue League has joined animal welfare organizations nationwide in asking the community for help due to the high amount of animals at shelters.

Across the nation, animal welfare organizations are experiencing a high volume of animals needing care. Financial and housing insecurity caused in part by inflation has resulted in families needing to part with their pets and surrender them to animal shelters.

Typically, private shelters and rescues would support public shelters by transferring animals into their own care, and providing necessary treatment and adoption services. Their flexibility and resources allow less immediately adoptable dogs and cats—such as those with untreated medical conditions, seniors, and nursing litters—to be cared for and rehomed. With adoptions down across the state, however, organizations like these, including the ARL, cannot transfer in or out their usual numbers of animals.

The Share the Care initiative recognizes that everyone has a part to play in saving the lives of dogs and cats. Shelters provide a safe haven for found and unwanted pets, alleviate overcrowding, take on special cases, and help pets stay with their families; and community members are needed to adopt homeless animals and follow through on spaying or neutering any pets they’ve acquired through other sources.

Collaborating as a team and addressing the problem together will have the greatest lifesaving impact for companion animals, in our communities and across the state.

How can I be part of the solution?

Donating

At the ARL, we like to say we’re not only fueled by love but also funded by it. Since we receive no federal, state, or county support, and very little municipal support, almost all of our budget is funded by people like you. Each day, your dollars help hundreds of animals receive necessary medical care, nutritious food, a comfy and safe place to sleep, and lots of love from our attentive staff and volunteers. There are many ways to give.

Learn more about it here.

Becoming a foster

Fostering is a rewarding experience and one of the most important programs at ARL. Because of our foster caregivers, we can provide individualized care and love to the population of animals that need it the most and increase our capacity beyond our walls.

Our Foster Program provides everything the foster family needs to take care of the animals: litter, food, crates, treats, and other articles to ease the process.

You can volunteer to foster the current animals living in the shelter or be an emergency boarding foster taking temporary care of animals whose families are struggling.

Learn more about the foster program here.

Adopting

Every animal deserves a forever home, and adopting is the perfect way to give second and third chances in life to animals living in the shelter.

At the ARL, we have a variety of animals available for adoption at any given time. Dogs, cats, puppies, kittens, guinea pigs, rabbits, pigs, chicken, and more.

All the animals available for adoption are available to foster and to participate in the Trial Adoption Program. If you are not sure if you’re ready to make a lifelong commitment with a pet, you can trial the pet for a maximum of two weeks. At the end of the term, you can choose to complete the adoption or return the pet.

To learn about our adoption process and view the animals available for adoption, visit www.berksarl.org.

Volunteering

Helping our animals, our staff, and our community, volunteers are an essential part of the caregiving work that we do at the ARL. Through generous contributions of time and talent, volunteers allow our animals to receive daily exercise and enrichment and assist our staff with their daily duties. So much of what we do would not be possible without the heart and commitment of our volunteer team!

Learn about our volunteer opportunities here.

Sharing available pets on social media

This is the easiest and fastest way you can help the animals living at the shelter from the comfort of your home.

Just go to our website, choose an animal and share their information among your contacts. More exposure means more chances to find a forever home.

It takes a village to save the lives of the animals in our community. Be part and act now! The animals will greatly appreciate it.