Dear Hokie:

I really care about animals. But other than volunteering at my local shelter or donating money, what can I do to help them?

-- Kind Critter

Dear KC:

Believe it or not, you can help animals in countless ways through the simple decisions you make every day! Here are just a few examples:

* Eat less meat, dairy products and eggs
* Purchase only products that come from animals raised under humane conditions
* Buy cosmetics and household products that aren’t tested on animals
* Vote for politicians who support humane legislation
* Encourage friends, family, coworkers and others to spay and neuter their pets
* Take your kids to animal-free alternatives to zoos and circuses

Get more tips like this from our A Better Choice Campaign!

Know other ways we can help animals in our everyday lives? Please post them here!

Being a graphic artist and webmaster, I started doing website maintenance free for rescue organizations in this area. I post their animals to Petfinder. I design flyers and newspaper ads for their fundraiser events, I design their annual calendars and find them the most reasonably priced printer. I do their business cards, t-shirt designs, etc...

I am also in the process of talking to vets in the area and doing research for a mobile vet clinic, to service the low income housing areas. We just held a low-cost shot clinic in conjunction with the city, who donated the foyer of city hall (tiled and air conditioned). City hall is downtown, where most of our low income families live. In one afternoon we vaccinated 270 animals, which then lead to the idea of a mobile vet clinic. I do the research for everyone and present them with the most feasible results.

By doing my behind-the-scenes work, the rescuers and shelter personnel have their time freed up to do what they do best.

www.askKASPA.org

If you bake great cookies, offer your services to the next bake sale at the local shelter/rescue.
If you are a handyman, ask them if they need your services for free.
If you sew well, find some inexpensive material and sew little blankets for the cats and dogs to lay on.
If you are good at bookkeeping, offer your services. Our local rescues are great at saving animals and finding homes but their treasurers are pulling out their hair because of the state of the daily bookkeeping.
Organize a donation drive with your child's school. Ask a rescue what they need most (it's often small things like paper towels, kleenex, windex, hydrogen peroxide, dish brushes, etc. that they need all the time) and have the kids bring in a donation. Then have them help deliver the collected goodies. Just make SURE you ask the rescue what they need. We had a very well meaning volunteer collect dog food - van loads full of it, and the shelter feeds only one certain dog food under contract... it was most embarrassing at the moment, but then someone had a brilliant idea, and the vans with the donated food were taken to the low income housing areas and distributed there.