Donations & Estate Planning

Seattle Animal Shelter is fortunate to be the recipient of bequests and donations from many caring individuals who want to further our mission of protecting and promoting the cause of animal welfare.

If you wish to make a donation to one of the following funds listed below, you may make a convenient online payment or make your check payable to the specific fund(s) and mail it to Seattle Animal Shelter at 2061 - 15th Avenue West, Seattle, Washington 98119. Your donation may be tax deductible, but consult your tax advisor first.

Any donor may designate his or her gift to one or all of the four funds available for helping animals:

Shelter Expansion Fund

This expansion will add 4,600 square feet of space to the existing shelter and will provide room for such activities as volunteer orientations, training, indoor dog obedience classes, regional animal welfare meetings, and coordination of off-site adoption events. The Seattle Animal Shelter currently has over 600 volunteers participating in twenty five programs and this new space will allow the Shelter staff and volunteers to continue to enhance the programs and services provided to the community.

Help The Animals Fund

Established in 1977 to receive gifts and donations for the purpose of promoting animal welfare. Contributions could be used for such activities as developing public education videos or advertisements that promote responsible pet ownership, purchasing toys and treats for animals at the shelter, providing animal carriers for low income or elderly persons, providing extra ordinary veterinary care for animals that have been subjected to cruelty and to pay for extensive medical care associated with rehabilitating sick and injured animals through the shelter’s Foster Care Program.

Help The Animals Fund Video

Off-Leash Area Fund

Part of the off-leash area program, is for the sole purpose of creating, maintaining and providing amenities for the off-leash areas here in Seattle. Help us to help the dogs!

Pet Population Control Fund

Established in 1996 to receive donations for the purpose of promoting pet population control through Seattle's low cost Municipal Spay and Neuter Clinic. Donations may be used to pay for the spaying and neutering of pets owned by low income or elderly persons, promote public awareness about the benefits and importance of spaying and neutering, or to purchase new spay and neuter technology that may not otherwise be obtained.

Seattle Animal Shelter understands that finding the right home for your pet once you are gone is an act of love. Some of the best placements are in the hands of a friend or family member who is familiar with the animal. Other times, the search for a suitable home takes longer. The animal care staff at Seattle Animal Shelter is here to help.

Pets must be healthy and without severe behavior problems at the time they are entrusted to Seattle Animal Shelter. If the age, health or behavior of your pet may prevent finding a suitable home, euthanasia may be the most thoughtful option. You may want to discuss this matter with an animal care staff person and your executor. Please understand that once your animal has been entrusted and surrendered to Seattle Animal Shelter, that the staff will make decisions that are in the best interest of the animal.

Seattle Animal Shelter will assist in placing animals owned by individuals who have named Seattle Animal Shelter in their wills or made other deferred giving arrangements. If you presently have a will, you can easily add a codicil (an amendment to your will) providing for a bequest to Seattle Animal Shelter and the specific animal welfare fund that you wish to donate to. Please specify in your last will and testament your intentions to surrender your animal to Seattle Animal Shelter in an effort to have your beloved pet placed in a new home. If you live outside the immediate vicinity, arrangements must be made to transport your pet to the Seattle Animal Shelter. Your attorney or executor should be made aware of the arrangements.

The staff at Seattle Animal Shelter expresses our deepest gratitude to donors whose spirit of caring will endure into the future. In return, we are honored to help find a new home for their closest animal companions. Provisions made through bequests, trusts and life insurance policies allow Seattle Animal Shelter to carry on its work of protecting animals and fostering a high quality of life for animals and people in our community.

For more information on planning a bequest to Seattle Animal Shelter, please contact Animal Shelter Executive Director Don Jordan at (206) 386-4286 or send an e-mail to don.jordan@seattle.gov.