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YOU CAN HELP SAVE LIVES

How you can help

Every day, dogs and cats are killed in shelters just because they don’t have safe places to call home. But you can help change that by volunteering with the animals.

There are so many fun and meaningful ways for you to make a difference, from volunteering at one of our lifesaving centers to working at adoption events to fostering pets.

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Become a lifesaving volunteer

Best Friends and NKLA volunteers are lifesavers and are key to ensuring that the animals thrive and find loving homes.

Whether you want to work hands-on with the animals, help facilitate adoptions or drive a transport van, we have opportunities to match your special skills.

Sign Up to Volunteer

After you complete your volunteer profile, you will receive an automated email with details about volunteer opportunities along with sign-up instructions. Please familiarize yourself with the Best Friends Volunteer Handbook and Orientation (available in Digital Cheetah once you create a profile).

If you’ve volunteered with Best Friends before, go to Digital Cheetah and log in to see opportunities available to you. Please note that if you have had no activity for six months, your profile becomes inactive. Please contact volunteerla@bestfriends.org to reactivate your account.

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Volunteer for events

Best Friends hosts lifesaving events throughout the year, and volunteers are crucial to making them successful.

As an event volunteer, you’ll help the event to run smoothly and ensure that every attendee has a wonderful experience. Questions about volunteering at events? Email volunteerla@bestfriends.org.

Black and white cat in shelter

Save lives by fostering

Foster volunteers are critical for saving the lives of pets in L.A. Not only do foster volunteers give pets the chance to get extra love and attention before finding permanent homes, they free up space in our centers for more pets to be saved.

As a foster volunteer, you’ll give a dog, cat, puppy or kitten the love and care needed to thrive and find a new home. Best Friends will help you find a foster pet who fits your schedule and lifestyle, and give you all the supplies you’ll need to care for your temporary houseguest.

And by the way, fostering doesn’t have to be a long-term commitment. Whether you foster for a week or a weekend, you’ll be making a huge difference.

Foster a Cat
Foster a Dog


After you complete your foster application, you will receive an automated email with details about foster opportunities and sign-up instructions. Next, you’ll be asked to watch a video, take a short quiz and let us know what type of foster pet you’re interested in. 

If you’ve fostered pets with Best Friends before, go to Digital Cheetah and log in to see foster opportunities available to you. Please note that if you have had no activity for six months, your profile becomes inactive. Please contact volunteerla@bestfriends.org to reactivate your account.

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Silhouettes of dogs and cats

Become a NKLA Coalition member

Though we’ve made tremendous progress for homeless dogs and cats in L.A. and across the country, there’s still work to do, and collaboration is key. Your organization can help by joining the NKLA Coalition.

Best Friends Animal Society has worked side-by-side with Los Angeles Animal Services (LAAS) and the No-Kill Los Angeles (NKLA) Coalition to go from a 56% save rate in 2012 to a 90% save rate in 2020. While navigating tremendous change and obstacles throughout the pandemic, the City of Los Angeles has been able to maintain a high save rate in 2022. 

We are continuing to pivot our strategies, create programming sustainability, and help the public support the lifesaving of cats and dogs through foster, volunteering, and adoption.

Join the NKLA Coalition