Kids Summer Animal Activities

Hey kids, want to spend your summer helping animals? Last summer, ten year-old Noel Beecroft (pictured here with SPCA International staff member Stephanie Scott) helped dogs and cats by organizing her neighbors, family, and friends in support of SPCA International’s Operation Baghdad Pups program.

You can help too! Here are five fun activity ideas for you and your friends:

Raise Money for Shelter Animals: You can help dogs and cats by creating a collection can out of an old coffee can or glass jar and asking your friends, family and neighbors to donate. First, set a fundraising goal - $10, $25 or even $100. Then, decorate the jar or can with photos of animals or your animal drawings. After you have reached your goal, ask an adult for help mailing the donations to SPCA International or ask them to take you down to your local animal shelter to deliver the results of your good work in person.

Pet Food Drive: Many people are struggling this summer because jobs are hard to find. You can help the pet parents among them by collecting cans and bags of pet food and delivering this donation to a local food bank. This is a great way to help animals in need and prevent struggling pet parents from having to surrender their friend to a shelter.

Bird Watching: Visit your local library and ask a librarian to help you find a book about wildlife and birds in your area or search for information online. Read about the wildlife and birds and then venture out to a local park or wildlife preserve with an adult. Bring along a pair of binoculars to get a closer look. Hopefully, you’ll be seeing the wildlife and birds from your book in their natural habitat. Afterward, have a conversation with your friends about what you saw. Learning about the wildlife around you and teaching your friends about these special creatures spreads understanding and promotes humane action.

Shadow an Animal Shelter Volunteer: You may be too young to volunteer at your local animal shelter or sanctuary, but you can ask to shadow a shelter volunteer for an hour. The volunteer can show you the animals and tell how they keep them happy and healthy. This fun trip will help you get ready to become a shelter volunteer once you reach the minimum age requirement.

Neighborhood Pet Parade: Get your friends together and celebrate animals! Set a date and time and ask all your neighborhood friends to bring their pets, making sure that each animal is safely contained or restrained. Ask a parent to find a safe quiet residential street nearby and with their help parade around the block with your animals. You can even make signs and hand out humane education flyers to passersby.