Pet Enrichment Volunteers

Please only sign up for 1 shift. Our Volunteer Team will then contact you to help get you officially scheduled. Please do not come to the shelter until you have been contacted & scheduled.

The SPCA of Texas is currently seeking volunteers to assist with shelter enrichment. Shelter enrichment means providing animals under managed care (shelter) with the environmental stimuli they need to remain physically and emotionally healthy. Any novel stimulus which evokes an animal’s interest can be considered enriching, including natural and artificial objects, scents, novel foods and different methods of preparing foods, and new activities of all kinds.

Enrichment will take place daily. This will include preparing the novelty treats, distributing them to dogs and cats, monitoring the reactions of each animal, and any clean-up that might need to occur as a result of the treat.

We provide flexible shifts every day of the week, from 9 am to 6 pm. Volunteers aged 10 and above are welcome to participate. For volunteers under 15, involvement alongside a parent or guardian aged 18 or older is required. Younger volunteers, aged 10 to 11, will primarily focus on cat handling after training, while those aged 12 and older can handle both dogs and cats.

To begin volunteering, you'll need to create a volunteer account and complete a few initial steps. There is a $15 volunteer fee per person to cover the initial costs of onboarding new volunteers. Once these steps are completed, you'll be eligible to sign up for an Orientation session, where you'll receive further training and information.

The process to become a volunteer is as follows:

Please refrain from going to the shelter until your scheduled Orientation date.