A participant in a recent Zoom meeting announced she finally started her rescue organization, filled up in the first week, and needed advice on how to find funding. Unfortunately, people don’t tell it like it is when they have the advantage of distance. The group suggested places to get grants, which will take months—even if the person qualifies—and moved on to the next topic.
Now, there’s a houseful (she said it is a home start-up) of needy animals and a caregiver without a plan to care for them. Suppose she can’t find help. How long before the situation becomes another animal crisis news story?
Have you thought about starting a rescue? Are you interested in creating another type of organization to help people or animals? Or, maybe you just want to know more about how charities and nonprofits work. This is the first article in the Nonprofit Know-how section of 45 Cats, 7 Dogs, and 1 Horse Later. The Nonprofit Know-how posts will be free until April 2024.
6 Common Rescue Misconceptions
It’s just a few extra pets.
They all need time, attention, and medical care, and you also need room to quarantine each one until they go to the vet to avoid bringing in disease that could spread to other rescue animals, personal pets, or people.
It’s easy, not like running a real business.
It is a business. Think marketing, social media presence, bookkeeping, planning events, writing grants, and adoptions. There may be local regulations about the number of pets allowed in a home or within a specific distance from another house if a home business is permitted.
You don’t need a license or permit.
If you plan to get donations, you need a board, bylaws, incorporation, and nonprofit status with the IRS (usually a 501(c)(3)), along with a state/city sales tax exemption. Most people won’t donate to an individual, and personal home insurance may not cover you for some animals (dog breeds, exotics, etc.) or doing business at home.
Everyone gives money to help cute animals.
No, they don’t. An occasional five dollars over coffee won’t pay for food, medical bills, and supplies. Large organizations with thousands of contacts struggle to raise funds. Without the ability to deduct donations, large donations won’t happen. You also won’t qualify for most grants.
All you do is feed the animals and find people to adopt them.
If only. In reality, shelters are overcrowded, and the animals you take in may be much more permanent than you planned. Are you willing and able to support them all properly (food, medical care, attention, and comfortable living conditions) on your dime—indefinitely?
You can make money charging for adoptions.
Government-operated shelters and many rescues give pets away to find homes and make room for more. Adoption fees help ensure a good home committed to the pet for life. No one recovers what they put into caring for the animals.
After eight years of running a rescue, I cringe when I hear these myths, and it’s just the beginning of the misconceptions that cause people to jump in unprepared.
Are you, or someone you know, planning to start an animal rescue organization? Do you want to create some other type of charitable organization? Maybe you volunteer and want to understand more about what goes on inside a charity. There is a lot of need and room for many more people who care.
I’m a Certified Nonprofit Executive with over thirty years in rescue work and eight years of running a nonprofit. If I don’t have an answer, I’ll help find one. So feel free to ask questions.
The first few posts in the nonprofit section will be free. It will become a paid section in April 2024. All payments support the animals.