Help us help the animals!

Seminole County Animal Services has a very active and exciting volunteer program. If you are 18 years or older and have a passion for animals we would love to have you join our volunteer team.

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Want to work hands on with the dogs and cats?

Paw Partners: Work hands on with the resident shelter dogs and cats.
As a Paw Partner you can volunteer in many areas: Turning out and exercising dogs, bathing and grooming the dogs or cats, assisting in off-site adoption events, and becoming an adoption counselor and assisting customers in choosing the best dog or cat for adoption.

Paw Partners also include volunteers who are experienced dog trainers or behaviorists and want to work with our dogs and teach them some basic manners that will help in getting them adopted. A well-mannered dog that will sit for a potential adopter and walk nicely on a leash has a much better chance of adoption than a dog that does not know a few basic commands.

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Project Partners: Time is something all of us seem to not have enough of!! But if your heart is still in volunteering then becoming a project partner is for you. The shelter has several events throughout the year that require a lot of volunteers. But these are events are for 1 day only. So if you have only a few hours to spare or perhaps a whole day working as a volunteer for one of our special events is not only rewarding but a whole lot of fun.

Our big annual events are Smitten with Kittens during the summer, Feline Fiesta and Responsible Pet Ownership Day in September, and Home 4 The Holidays in December. We do several other offsite events during the year that a Project Partner can be involved in.

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Office Partners: Assist with clerical duties such as filing, putting together information packets, making copies, and other office type duties. Every animal we adopt out or every student we educate will be given a goody bag. Office Partners play a big part in getting these packets put together. There is always something new and different to do if you become an Animal Services Office Partner.

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Foster Care:  Fostering an animal means bringing the animal or animals into your home and caring for them until they are ready for adoption. This could be a litter of kittens needing to be bottle fed or a dog just coming out of a surgery, needing some quiet, healing time. There are many reasons we need foster homes. You would need to be able to bring the animals back to the shelter for regular checkups. Foster homes will be provided with food, medications and supplies for their foster animals.

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BFF100 (Bright Future Foster 100): Seminole County High School students, ages 16-18, can foster a shelter dog with parental permission. The foster time would last for eight weeks. During this time the student must complete new volunteer orientation, six weeks of obedience training with the dog, and write a report about the experience. If the student meets all of these requirements at the end of the eight weeks, they will be rewarded 100 Bright Future hours.

So whether you're a "dog person" or a "cat person" or just someone who wants to help and make a difference in the life of a shelter animal, we look forward to having you join our team of volunteers at Seminole County Animal Services.

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New Volunteer Information

All new volunteers will be required to attend a new volunteer orientation to learn the ins and outs of the volunteer program. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer or foster you can contact DGagliano@seminolecountyfl.gov for an emailed copy of our volunteer packet, or you can stop by the shelter and pick up a volunteer packet.. Please hang on to your volunteer packet until you can attend a new volunteer orientation, and bring it with you filled out and ready to be turned in at the start of the orientation. We offer new volunteer orientations every 4-6 weeks.

Next new volunteer orientation date: Seminole County Animal Services has resumed holding volunteer orientations, all upcoming orientations will be announced on our Facebook page.  Volunteer orientations will have limited space, and it is recommend that you arrive early to ensure your seat. 

For more information contact: Diane Gagliano, Program Coordinator, at 407-665-5208 or DGagliano@seminolecountyfl.gov

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