Volunteer
Love animals and want to make a difference in our community? Join our team of life-saving volunteers.
Volunteer
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Volunteer Requirements
- At least 18 years old – Youth Volunteers ages 10-17 must be accompanied by an adult, preferably a parent or guardian, who will be present at all times.
- Complete New Volunteer Onboarding and Required Trainings – Most volunteer opportunities have training requirements that will need to be completed prior to signing up for a shift.
- Make a Commitment – We ask that all volunteers complete at least 4 hours of volunteer service per month for at least 6 months. Alternatively, we ask that all volunteers complete at least 24 hours of service.
- Sign the Liability Waiver and Photo Release Form – This form is a part of your volunteer application and agreement to the terms outlined in the document is required.
Volunteer opportunities
We have a wide variety of volunteer opportunities that are available to new and experienced volunteers alike! From walking dogs, to washing, dishes, to community outreach and more, AHS volunteers will make a huge difference in our organization and the lives of the animals.
Core Volunteer Service
Volunteers power our daily operations through essential tasks—what may seem small makes a huge difference.
- Bed, Bath, & Beyond (Laundry & Dishes) – Help with one of the most important volunteer opportunities at AHS that positively impacts both the animals and our staff.
- Thrift Store Helper – Want to get involved in a different way? Our thrift store needs volunteers to help with the fast-paced retail environment. The earnings brought in from our Thrift Store are essential to running and expanding our programs. Volunteering with us is a great way to expand your resume with hands-on retail experience. From Cashier duties to sorting clothes and designing displays, our thrift store is looking for your skills and talent!
- Pet Food Distribution Center Helper – Want to be part of the solution in our community for people who need more resources? Volunteer to bag dog and cat food for personal pets in need!
- Enrichment Build – Enjoy working with a small group of other volunteers to accomplish important tasks? Join us for our Saturday Enrichment Build, where we make treats, toys, and other forms of enrichment for our shelter animals.
- Animal Care Attendant – Want to make a direct impact on the health and wellness of the animals in our care? Help our animal care staff with kennel cleaning!
- Task Masters – Are you looking to get more involved with AHS as a whole? Become a Task Master and help a variety of departments at the Adoption Center and Shelter with necessary side tasks. Included in this activity is the opportunity to provide in-kennel clicker training for the dogs as well!
- Transportation – We need volunteers to transport animals to local off-site vet appointments! Regional transport may also be needed.
Animal Handling
Animal handling volunteers help in key ways—like walking dogs, socializing pets, and assisting our behavior team. All animal handling volunteer opportunities require orientation and specialized training through our volunteer program.
- Pooch Playmate – Working with dogs on campus by providing enrichment in the form of socialization, yard time, play, and campus walks for the dogs in the Adoption Center.
- Playgroup Helper – Help our behavior team get dogs out to play and interact with other dogs in the shelter! When volunteers help with our dog playgroups, we can get more dogs out, provide dog-dog socialization, glean pivotal information about their behavior, and enrich their lives while they are waiting to find a family of their own.
- Kitty Playmate – Providing socialization and care to the cats and kittens in the Adoption Center. This volunteer opportunity has limited availability due to the lower length of stay for cats.
- Urban Tails – Give a single dog the chance to get off campus for a walk, hike, run, or go to a brewery, your house, or a park! Urban Tails is available Tuesday-Saturday and ranges from 1-3 hours. Urban Tails is an Asheville Humane Society program, and all volunteers must complete the general volunteer application, training, and core service requirements.
- Mountain Mutts – Join other hikers and dogs for an easy to moderate 2–4-mile hike on Wednesday mornings. This hike takes about 3 hours. Mountain Mutts is an Asheville Humane Society program, and all volunteers must complete the general volunteer application, training, and core service requirements.
- Hiking Hounds – Join other hikers and dogs for a Sunday morning group hike. This hike is a moderate 3–6-mile hike that takes about 3 hours. Hiking Hounds is a third-party club that works with the dogs at AHS only and is fully organized by volunteers. They have a separate application form and their own set of requirements. For more information and to apply, follow this link: https://givepul.se/qoex07
People & Community
Community volunteers make an impact through pet food distribution, low-cost vaccine clinics, and other outreach efforts—helping pets and the people who love them.
- Pet Food Distribution Center Helper – Want to be part of the solution in our community for people who need more resources? Volunteer to bag dog and cat food for personal pets in need!
- Helpline Heroes – Looking for an opportunity to make a HUGE impact while volunteering remotely? Helpline volunteers organize voicemail messages that come from people in need and prioritize them in our system. This helpful volunteer assignment significantly reduces wait times and helps our staff provide essential resources in a timelier manner.
Fundraising & Events
Support our Fundraising & Engagement team through events, outreach projects, content creation, and more—helping fuel our mission behind the scenes.
- Event Volunteering – Event season generally occurs April through October, and we need volunteers to help them run smoothly! Events are a great way for AHS to encourage donations and raise awareness of our excellent organization and programs.
Specialized Volunteer Opportunities are specific to each department and usually require additional training.
- MMU Clean Up Crew – Help our Mobile Medical Unit team with important tasks like wrapping surgical packs and cleaning surgical instruments!
- Maintenance Master – Are you handy with tools and have maintenance expertise? Help us keep our facility safe and well-maintained.
- Foster Program Assistant – Looking for a regular volunteer schedule? Looking to help our foster program with important day-to-day tasks that are essential to getting animals out into foster homes? Become a Foster Program Assistant!
- And more!
Would you like to schedule your corporate or school group for a volunteer session with Asheville Humane? We would be thrilled to have you join us!
Group Enrichment Build:
Asheville Humane Society’s Enrichment Program was created to provide in-kennel enrichment for the dogs in our care and has now expanded to also benefit cats and small animals. Enrichment enhances the quality of animals’ lives while they are at the shelter. It reduces stress, anxiety and boredom and helps promote the human-animal bond. All shelter animals benefit from enrichment programs and are especially helpful for long term residents. Enrichment items, such as treats, toys, etc., are distributed to the animals in our care several times per day to help them maintain behavioral and mental health while they are living in the shelter environment. Volunteers are essential to this program. Volunteers will work together to assemble these items and get them ready for distribution. Volunteers also may help with various tasks based on the needs of our organization at the time.
- We are able to offer group volunteering opportunities once per week from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. (15 volunteers max) on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Saturdays depending on our availability.
- All volunteers must sign a waiver prior to beginning the project. All youth volunteers (Ages 10-17) must have their waiver signed by their parent/legal guardian if applicable. We will collect all of the waivers before the project begins.
- If you are interested in scheduling your group to volunteer with Asheville Humane, please fill out this form or email volunteer@ashevillehumane.org
FAQs
We require all volunteers to purchase a $15 volunteer t-shirt to wear while volunteering. If you are unable to purchase a volunteer shirt, please contact the Volunteer Manager at volunteer@ashevillehumane.org for assistance.
As much as you would like! We require all volunteers to join us for a minimum of four hours per month for at least six months. As long as a volunteer can commit to at least 24 hours of service, we are happy to move you forward in the onboarding process.
Unfortunately, due to the specialized training required to volunteer with our organization, we do not currently have a program for community service that is court-ordered or suggested by your legal counsel.
Yes! Youth volunteers (Ages 10-17) must be accompanied by an adult, preferably a parent or guardian, who will be present at all times. Youth volunteers must complete the same required training classes or materials alongside their accompanying adult. Youth volunteers are permitted to sign up with an accompanying adult for most of our available volunteer opportunities, including those that require animal handling. Volunteer opportunities not available to youth volunteers will be labeled as 18+
- Create an account with GivePulse, our online volunteer platform. https://www.givepulse.com/login
- Join AHS Volunteer Hub, your one-stop-shop for volunteer events, training, and opportunities. https://givepul.se/olw59g
- Register for available shifts! You will receive a welcome email with more information about how to get started
We have a few different options for hiking/walking with shelter dogs. The main opportunities are Hiking Hounds, Mountain Mutts, and Urban Tails.
- Hiking Hounds – Sunday Morning Group Hike. If you are interested in the Hiking Hounds Sunday morning group hike, please email ahshikinghounds@outlook.com . This awesome volunteer group partners with us to get the dogs in our care off campus and out in nature for exercise and enrichment. They have a different application, but the program is designed to get folks out on the trail pretty quick. They will email you about the steps you need to take and the classes you need to sign up for.
- Mountain Mutts – Wednesday Morning Group Hike (AHS). (See Steps Below)
- Urban Tails – Tuesday-Saturday individual walk/hike with a dog (AHS). (See Steps Below)
If you are interested in hiking/walking dogs through AHS as a volunteer, here are the main steps:
- Apply to be a volunteer with Asheville Humane Society
- Complete New Volunteer Orientation Presentation and Tour
- Complete at least 3 hours of Core Service
- Take Canine Body Language Class – This class will teach you all about what dogs are saying with their body language. This class is required for the group hikes, Mountain Mutts and Hiking Hounds
- Take Pooch Essentials Class – This class teaches you the fundamentals of dog handling in the shelter environment, how to read kennel cards, and provides important information about how to work with shelter dogs. If you take both Canine Body Language and Pooch Essentials Class, you are eligible to do Urban Tails and other specialized dog handling opportunities.