What do Animal Charities do?

Animal charities come in a variety of species - some are large & international (e.g. the WWF) while others are very much your local charity set up by someone who simply cares about animals & wants to help them. Use the term "animal charities" fairly loosely - as well as animal rescue, they also cover things such as conservation, wildlife protection etc.

Many will be involved in animal welfare - the RSPCA in England and Wales for instance - while others have a different reason for being.

Animal charities may have a number of roles - here are a few examples:

One species focus

Charities & conervation groups may represent and work to help one species e.g. Cats Protection, Pandas International or Bangalow Koalas. Charities can be very specific to a breed or species and have further geographic gropus such as The Labrador Rescue Trust (south west UK) or Labrador Rescue South East & Central UK,

Some organisations or charities represent & campaign for a particular group of animals & their interests, such as Compassion for World Farming for pigs, sheep, goats, horses, or the Marine Conservation Society for sealife, or World Horse Welfare for horses. Charities may unite to tackle various issues, such as those involved in ENCAP (the welfare and protection of wild animals in captivity). Another example is the RSPB which works with Birdlife International in Indonesia to protect rainforest (where millions of birds live, not to mention the orangutan & Sumatran tiger). Birdlife International which consists of 117 conservation organisations

Habitat Conservation charities

If we want to look after animals at all, we need to leave them plenty of space in which to live. Conservation organisations such as Fauna and Flora, the World Land Trust, the Woodland Trust, the National Trust, the RSPB and the Marine Conservation Society all have a key role to play in wildlife conservation. But so do you and I, and we'll have lots of ways in future in which we can make a difference.

Rescue Care

These charities may provide emergency rescue care for any pets or wildlife (they may deal with pets or wildlife or both), such as the Wildlife Rescue & Ambulance Service in Sussex, UK

Animal charities give you a way to help animals

Disaster management

In the event of natural disasters and other, there here are some of the charities who get involved. Of course, in any natural disaster local animal charities will want to help - but they will often be hit by the diaster themselves and will need outside help immediately after the event and in the days and months - even years thereafter. Millions of people around the world are dependent on their livestock, and where animals are affected, the impact on local populations can be disastrous. Here are just a few charities who are often involved in disaster relief & management for animals.

Providing very specialist support to animals charities

An excellent example is Snip International which promotes neutering programmes aimed at stray and feral animals, mostly cats. Over 15 years it has donated specialist catching, trapping and holding equipment to animal welfare groups in almost 60 countries. They may look to fulflil a particular project, such as getting fencing put up in Africa (that's Rhino Ark) to protect the animals inside it.

Animal rescue & re-home

Many animal charities rescue and re-home animals who have come into their care as unwanted, abandoned, "don't want the pet anymore because he's the wrong clolour for my new sofa" (yes, honestly), owners are moving abroad, they've bred too many & can't cope with the numbers, the pet is too old - the excuses are too many to mention. Of course you also have the time when an owner has died or become too ill to look after the animals in question

Retired animals

Some charities help care for animals who've served us well and are now ready to move on to second careers (such as retired race horses and theGreyhound Trust

Charities solving problems

Some charities focus on a particular issue or a range of particular issues e.g. the Cinnamon Trust who help uphold the unique bond between animals & the elderly by providing pet care to the elderly & finding home which will take the elderly & their pets.

The Animal Human Bond

In the UK, the Society for Companion Animals Studies supports and promotes the health and social benefits of interactions between people and companion animals. In the US, Pet Partners (previously known as the Delta Society) helps people live healthier and happier lives by incorporating therapy, service and companion animals into their lives. Other examples are the Assistance Dog charities, all of whom come under the umbrella of Assistance Dogs UK.

There are many opportunities to get involved, either by working for animals charities in paid employment or by volunteering for animals charities, on a regular basis or now and again. Thanks to the internet with social networking, you can help animals while online in a cafe in Swindon UK right over the other side of the world.