Volunteering for Cocheco Valley Humane Society

Caring for 2,300 animals every year is a huge job, and our staff simply couldn't do it all by themselves.  At CVHS, we are concerned with nurturing all of our animals' needs:  physical, psychological, and emotional.  In order to reach this goal, we need lots of help from the animal lovers in our community.  We depend on the many dedicated volunteers who assist us in caring for our guests and making them comfortable and happy.

From direct animal care in the shelter, to fundraisers and special events, there is a volunteer opportunity available for everyone. Every little thing you do in the life of one of our animals makes a big difference in his/ her quality of life.  Together, we can make an animal's stay a comfortable and positive experience.  And in return, you get the satisfaction of knowing that you are improving the quality of life for many homeless, abused, or neglected animals. 

If you love animals, and are looking for a way to help the homeless pets in your area, please consider donating some of your time to Cocheco Valley Humane Society! 

How You Can Get Started

In order to get started, you must complete and submit a volunteer application.  You will need to read the information below in order to complete your application. Please read the application carefully and sign in all places. Applications that are not filled out correctly will be returned.

Click here for a read-only version of the volunteer application. You will need to print it out and return it to CVHS either by mail, in person, or by fax. Each person applying to the volunteer program will need their own application - this includes anyone who is acting as a supervisor for another volunteer.

To request a copy of the application by email or traditional mail, call the Volunteer Coordinator at (603) 749-5322 ext. 111 or email volunteerc@cvhsonline.org.

Applications can be mailed to CVHS at 262 County Farm Road, Dover, NH 03820

Applications can faxed to CVHS at 603-749-3484.

Once your application is received and approved, we will contact you with orientation information. All new volunteers must attend an orientation session before they can begin volunteering.  At orientation, you will be given some general information about the shelter and you will be prepared for the kind of duties you'll be performing. Orientation sessions are held monthly and prior registration is required. Once your application is approved, the Volunteer Coordinator will contact you to let you know the date and time of the next session. Volunteers MUST be approved prior to attending orientation.  

Important Volunteer Policies and Guidelines

• It is important the volunteers working for CVHS are knowledgeable and consistent in order to be a true benefit to the animals and staff here.  In order to facilitate this, we ask that volunteers who wish to help in the shelter commit to a minimum of one hour per week. 
• Volunteers must be at least 16 years old to volunteer without supervision.
• Volunteers aged 14-15 years may volunteer with the supervision of a parent or guardian. 
• Any person(s) supervising another volunteer must submit an application and attend any required orientation and training sessions. Supervisors are expected to perform the same tasks as the volunteers they are monitoring and are responsible for making sure the volunteers in their care are adhering to CVHS' policies. 
• All volunteers are expected to support CVHS and our mission, and to adhere to all policies and guidelines set forth at orientation and training sessions.

  VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Volunteers must be at least 14 years old.

Anyone under the age of 16 must have a parent or guardian with them at all times who is at least 18 years of age. 

In-Shelter Animal Care: Our shelter's daily operations require a great deal of work. In-shelter volunteering involves direct animal care (cleaning, feeding, and caring for dogs, cats, and small animals), general shelter care (washing food dishes, doing laundry, scooping poop, etc.), and animal socialization (spending time with cats, and small animals, and walking/training dogs). If in-shelter volunteering is something that interests you, be prepared to perform a variety of different tasks. This is a good way to spend time directly with the animals and make the small contributions that make their lives a little sweeter.  

Fundraisers and Special Events: Approximately once a month, CVHS participates in special events outside of the shelter. Some of these events are fundraisers designed by our Special Event Coordinator to raise money for the shelter, and some are events organized by outside parties that we attend in order to promote the shelter in our community and raise awareness for homeless animals. In either case, we depend greatly on volunteer help to run these events. Each of these events requires many people to perform various duties: selling retail items, answering questions for the public, handing out literature, volunteering with your dog at our Doggie Kissing Booth, etc.  

Foster Care: Some of the animals we care for require more attention than we can offer them and would fare much better in a home setting rather than in a shelter. Dogs and cats that are pregnant, injured, ill, or suffering from behavioral problems require a peaceful place to rest and recover, as well as lots of personal attention. For these animals, we are pleased to be able to offer foster care, in which an animal with special needs can go to the home of a foster care volunteer for a specific period of time. If you have a little extra space in your home and your heart, consider becoming a foster care volunteer and give animals with special needs the extra care and attention that will help them flourish. Foster parents must be at least 21 years old. Additional training is required. Visit the foster care section of our website to learn more about the program and find a copy of the foster care application.  

Bingo: Every Saturday evening, Seacoast Bingo Hall in Somersworth holds a Bingo game to benefit CVHS. This is one of our most important and lucrative programs, raising over one hundred thousand dollars for the shelter every year. An exciting and interesting spectacle to behold, our Bingo game is run almost entirely by volunteers. Bingo volunteers must commit to one Saturday per month. We are always in need of new volunteers, over the age of 21, to help us raise money for the animals by selling tickets, calling numbers, etc. Stop by Seacoast Bingo any Saturday night to learn more about this volunteer opportunity! 

Humane Education: The Humane Education Program gives us the opportunity to teach kids about safety around animals that are unfamiliar. This program involves traveling to area schools to give presentations to children of various ages, as well as leading tours at CVHS for groups of children who want to learn about the functions of a humane society. We encourage anyone who has experience with public speaking, or who enjoys spending time with children, to apply for this program and help reach children at as young an age as possible to spread the word about the importance of being kind to animals.  

Local Animal Transport: On a weekly basis, animals have vet appointments at local veterinary clinics for spays, neuters, injuries, etc. Because a majority of shelter cleaning takes place early in the morning, every staff member is needed at the shelter. For this reason, volunteers over the age of 21 drive animals to and from their vet appointments on behalf of the shelter. Transport volunteers will be contacted up to a week in advance with the date, time, and location of a vet appointment. Volunteers can use either their own vehicles or the shelter van.  

On Call Morning Volunteers: Morning is the busiest time at the shelter - dogs are being walked, cages are being cleaned, animals are being fed, and laundry is piling up! Because of the amount of work that goes into cleaning and preparing the shelter to open at 11, every volunteer and staff member is indispensable. When someone calls out sick or can't make their shift, the morning cleaning becomes even more difficult. We need on call volunteers to help with the morning cleaning so we can make sure the shelter is clean and ready to open on time. Volunteers would receive a call by 8:30am if they are needed and would need to be available until 11am.