Foster Care
The Elk Grove Animal Services Foster Program provides temporary homes for animals who need extra care, time, or a break from the shelter environment. From raising newborn kittens and puppies to supporting long-stay pets who need time in a home to show their true personality, foster families help give animals the best possible chance at finding their forever home.
Some animals need a place to grow, some need a place to heal, and others simply need a quiet space outside the shelter to thrive. Our foster program makes all of that possible.
Our foster opportunities include:
- Traditional Fostering – Raising kittens, puppies, or other young animals in your home until they are old enough for adoption. Foster families play a huge role during kitten and puppy season by helping us care for babies who are too young for the shelter.
- Medical Recovery – Providing a calm, comfortable space for animals recovering from surgery, illness, or injury.
- Behavior Support – Helping shy kittens, kennel stressed dogs, or pets working through behavioral challenges build confidence in a home environment.
- Sleepovers & Awaiting Adoption – Giving long-stay dogs and cats time outside of the shelter so they can relax, show their personality, and have the best chance at finding a forever home. Time spent in foster homes help us gather photos, videos, and notes to share with potential adopters.
- Critter Camp – Fostering small mammals, reptiles, and other small animals until they are ready for adoption.
Fostering is free and fully supported by the shelter!
Elk Grove Animal Services provides food, supplies, and medical care, along with guidance from our staff. Foster families provide the home, the care, and the snuggles that help animals grow, recover, and have the best chance at finding a forever family. Just complete the questionnaire, join us on our foster Facebook group and get "On-Deck" or send the foster hotline a text when you are ready to bring someone home!
Doggy Day Out
Not ready to adopt or foster, but still want to make a big difference for a shelter dog?
Take a dog out for the day!
Our Doggy Day Out program gives dogs a chance to get out of the shelter and enjoy a few hours of fresh air, fun, and one-on-one attention. Whether it’s a walk, a coffee and pup-cup run, a trip to the park, or just relaxing at home, even a short break can mean so much.
These outings help dogs decompress, build confidence, and show us more of who they are outside the shelter. They also give our team helpful insight to share with potential adopters.
It’s a simple, rewarding way to help, especially for those who want to support shelter pets without the longer commitment.
Ready to plan a day out with a shelter dog?
Volunteer with Us!
The Elk Grove Animal Shelter is always happy to welcome volunteers to the team. With over 200 active volunteers at any time, we are very grateful for all our community members that dedicate their time to shelter pets in need. There are many different assignments that volunteers can be involved in from socializing cats and dogs to keeping those laundry machines running or greeting visitors in the lobby!
Current Volunteers
If you are a current volunteer, login to your VicNet Portal. In your Portal you can sign up for shifts, update your contact info, or post your hours.
New Volunteers
Our minimum age for volunteers is 14 years old, with the following basic requirements:
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Junior Volunteers:
If you are 14-15 years old, you can volunteer but must have a parent/guardian volunteering with you at all times. Your Parent/Guardian team member must also attend orientation, complete an application, and attend any trainings/shifts you attend. Some assignments may have age restrictions. -
Teen Volunteers:
If you are 16-17 years old, you can volunteer without adult supervision but you will need your parent’s written consent. -
Adult Volunteers:
If you are 18 or older, you can volunteer independently and do not require parental consent. -
Children:
If you are under 14 years old, you cannot volunteer onsite at this time. However you can still find ways to help the animals such as organizing a donation drive, craft projects, or educational outreach for your community. -
Students:
If you are looking to fulfill required community service or service project, please be aware that we are unable to accommodate short term volunteering or volunteers who need to complete service within 6 months of when they apply. -
Groups:
At this time we are unable to accommodate group volunteer projects onsite, but if you would like to complete a service project for the shelter please contact our Volunteer/Events Coordinator at [email protected]
How Do You Get Started?
First: Decide if the Elk Grove Animal Shelter Volunteer Program is right for you. Please join us if you can:
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Commit to a minimum of 4 hours per month for at least 6 months. You must continue to sign up for and attend 2 shifts (approximately 2 hours each) to remain active even after your first 6 months.
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Regularly check your email. This is the primary way we communicate to volunteers.
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Consent to a live scan. We run background checks on each of our volunteers by way of a digital fingerprint (live scan). We cover the fee and it will only take 15 minutes of your time.
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Attend all required trainings for each assignment you would like to work, regardless of your previous experience.
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Commit to providing service without judgment.
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Commit to treating all animals with respect.
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Understand that the shelter environment is challenging, rewarding, chaotic, wonderful, crazy, heart-breaking, fulfilling, and lots of hard work!
Second: Attend an orientation to get more detailed information about our program and ensure you would like to move forward. Volunteer Orientations are held just once a month and have limited capacity. We try to offer orientation on different days of the week/times to accommodate different schedules. If you are unavailable for any of our current upcoming orientations, check back often for new dates.
We are currently updating and reformatting our New Volunteer Orientation. New Volunteer Orientations will resume in September 2026.
Please check back soon for updated schedules and registration information. Thank you for your interest in volunteering with us—we look forward to welcoming you this fall!