VOLUNTEER
At Midcoast Humane, we are proud to have the support of many wonderful volunteers who put their concern for animal welfare into action by donating their time. Our dedicated volunteers make a commitment to help our organization and touch the lives of pets and people every day. Our volunteers are invaluable to us!
Group Volunteers
If you are a group interested in volunteering for a day at Midcoast Humane, please read the information below and reach out to us at volunteer@midcoasthumane.org!
Who?
We accept group volunteers from for-profit or nonprofit organizations, including corporations, local businesses, schools, and clubs. Our maximum size for a group is 12 individuals. For every three individuals under the age of 16, we ask that there be one adult present. Please note that we cannot accept volunteers under the age of 13.
What?
A day spent volunteering at Midcoast Humane may include an assortment of tasks, including doing laundry, cleaning (in both animal and non-animal areas), creating enrichment items, sorting donations, and other special projects. Short-term and group volunteers do not work directly with our animals, as that requires more extensive training. Your day at Midcoast Humane will include a tour, as well as the opportunity to interact with either cats or dogs at the end of your time.
Where?
We have two facilities: our Brunswick facility, located at 5 Industrial Parkway, and our Edgecomb facility, located at 27 Atlantic Highway. We host group volunteers at both locations.
When?
Larger groups are welcome to volunteer at our Brunswick facility on Mondays and Wednesdays. Smaller groups may request to volunteer on a different day, and we will accommodate these requests as possible. Groups interested in volunteering at our Edgecomb facility may request to volunteer any day of the week, and we will work with our staff to set up a day that works for everyone.
Why?
Volunteering with Midcoast Humane is a great opportunity for your group to do service work, while also learning more about animal welfare and sheltering. Your time here directly impacts the animals in our care, providing them with clean and cozy living spaces, and enrichment items to keep them mentally stimulated. Our Volunteer Coordinator will do a tour of our facility with your group, and you will be provided the opportunity to spend time with adoptable cats or an adoptable dog.
How?
If your group is interested in setting up a volunteer day at Midcoast Humane, please reach out to our Volunteer Coordinator by emailing volunteer@midcoasthumane.org. In your email, please include who your group is, what dates your group is available, how many people are in your group, and if any participants are under 16 years of age. Please note that our group activity contribution is $200 for three hours. This contribution is waived for non-profit organizations, including schools and educational programs.
Court-Ordered Community Service
If you are looking to complete court-ordered community service, please go through the general Volunteer Application Process, noted below. After taking the quiz, please select the ‘Court Ordered Volunteer Application’. Please note that if we do not receive your application far enough in advance, we may not be able to fulfill your hours by the deadline.
If you are looking to complete community service hours not by court-order, for example as a graduation requirement, please go through the general Volunteer Application Process.
Volunteer Application Process
- Start by watching this orientation video.
- At the end of this video there will be a web address that must be typed into the address bar that will take you to a short quiz. You must receive a 100% on the quiz, and are welcome to take it as many times as you need.
- Once completed, a page will show up with web addresses to both the Court Ordered Application and General Volunteer Application.
Thank you so much for your interest in volunteering with us! After you watch the video, take the quiz, and submit the application, our Volunteer Coordinator will be in touch with you to schedule an in-person volunteer meeting. This orientation will go more in depth on our procedures, our opportunities, and scheduling.
If at any point you need assistance with this process, or have questions, please reach out to volunteer@midcoasthumane.org. We look forward to seeing your application soon!
Jog-A-Dog Program
We are looking for runners of all distances and speeds to give our athletic and energetic dogs a chance to stretch their legs and get some much-needed exercise. Applying is easy, and you can feel good about helping shelter dogs stay physically fit and mentally sharp while they wait for new homes.
- Start by filling out this application.
- Attend an in-person meeting and animal handling training session at our Brunswick Shelter.
- Sign up for your first run with an experienced dog
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the process to becoming a volunteer?
Step 1: Watch our online orientation video. At the end of the video, there is a web address to the volunteer quiz. Type the web address into the address bar to get to the quiz.
Step 2: Take the volunteer quiz. You must receive a 100%, but can take it as many times as you need. Once you receive a 100%, a group of text will pop up offering two different applications, our court ordered volunteer application and our general volunteer application. Copy whichever web address is the correct one for your volunteering, paste it in the address bar, and go.
Step 3: Fill out the volunteer application. Once the application is completed, the Volunteer Coordinator will be in touch with the next in-person meeting dates.
Step 4: Attend an in-person meeting. This meeting will go over the Volunteer Handbook, scheduling, and any questions you may have.
Step 5: If interested in working with our felines or canines, stay after the meeting for the animal behavior & handling training run by our Behavior & Training Supervisor.
Step 6: Email the Volunteer Coordinator with which assignment you would like to be trained on to start, and what your availability looks like. They will work to schedule you to shadow either a staff member or experienced volunteer in that position.
Step 7: Attend your job shadow. This will help you get acquainted with the shelter space and what your assignment looks like in action. The shadow is one regular shift, so most likely 2 hours, with some being 1 or 1.5 hours. During your job shadow you will also receive a name-tag, a t-shirt, and two volunteer agreements to read over and sign.
Step 8: Create your volunteer login on VicNet and begin scheduling yourself for a regular shift. We ask volunteers to sign up for their shift by Sunday evening for the following week.
Q: What is the time commitment required to volunteer?
Due to how much time and training we put into our volunteers to ensure they will be successful here, we ask for a weekly commitment for four months. We understand that sometimes things come up, so if you a miss a week or two, that’s okay! But the expectation is that our volunteers will be able to sign up for a weekly shift.
Q: What is the age requirement to volunteer?
We ask that our volunteers be 16 years of age or older to volunteer independently. To volunteer with a parent or guardian, they must be 13 years of age or older. We ask that the parent or guardian go through the same application and training process. This age requirement is in place to ensure that we are keeping both our volunteers and our animals safe, and we cannot make exceptions to it.
If you have a child under 13 years old who is interested in our organization, we recommend looking into our foster program as a potential option for your family. We are also happy to chat about making enrichment items at home and bringing them in for our animals.
Q: When do you have volunteer shifts? How long are they?
Different volunteer assignments have different shifts available, but across the board we have shifts seven days a week from 8am-4pm. The majority of our shifts are 2 hours long, with a few being 1 or 1.5 hours.
Q: I’m interested in working with canines and felines; can I do both?
We have new volunteers choose one assignment, or assignments that go well together, for their first 12 hours of service. For example, volunteers doing laundry and donation sorting are welcome to learn both, but we don’t train volunteers on canine and feline duties at the same time. This way, volunteers are thoroughly learning an assignment before moving on to another. If a volunteer is interested in two assignments that are separate from one another, we ask that they please choose one to learn first. They’ll do their training and shadow on this assignment, and once they’ve done 12 volunteering hours in that assignment, they’ll check in with the Volunteer Coordinator and will be able to request training in another area.
Q: I need court-ordered service hours, can I do them at Midcoast?
If your offense does not fall into any of the following categories: a felony, a crime including violence or harassment of any kind, theft, or property destruction, then you may fulfill your hours here. We also ask that you provide us with ample time to bring you through orientation, training, and meet your hours prior to your deadline. Follow the online application process, and after the quiz, there is a Court Ordered Volunteer application you may fill out. The Volunteer Coordinator will then be in touch via email.
Q: I need community service hours for school, can I do them at Midcoast Humane?
If you are interested in meeting our four month required commitment, you are more than welcome to do your community service hours here. We only accept short-term volunteers if they are fulfilling court-ordered hours.
Q: I don’t have a computer and/or internet access, am I still able to volunteer?
Communications between the Volunteer Coordinator and our volunteers occurs entirely via email. We also have our volunteers schedule themselves for shifts through an online platform. If you are able to access email and internet via a smart phone, with the help of a friend or family member, or at a local library throughout the week, we can certainly accept you as a volunteer.
Q: Do you have job coaches to work with volunteers one on one?
A step in our volunteer onboarding process is to have new volunteers shadow experienced volunteers or staff members in order to learn what their assignment looks like through hands-on work. We are happy to assign new volunteers to shadows for their first few shifts if they feel they could use the additional support. Due to limited staff and volunteers, we are unable to have permanent coaches assigned to any of our volunteers. Volunteers are expected to be able to volunteer independently after their shadow(s).
If an individual would like to volunteer as a pair with their own coach, they are more than welcome to do so. We just ask that both individuals go through our online application and onboarding processes.
Q: Can I come play with the puppies/kittens for an afternoon?
Most of our puppies and kittens are housed in foster homes, and therefore are not at the shelter to meet people unless they have made an adoption appointment. To work with our adult dogs and cats, we have volunteers go through an animal behavior & training session with our Behavior & Training Supervisor to make sure that we are keeping our volunteers and our animals safe and comfortable. Due to this important training, only volunteers who have committed to being here for four months or longer are able to work directly with our animals.