Volunteer
Welcome!
Thank you for your interest in volunteering with Ridgeback Rescue of the U.S! We would love for you to be a part of the life-changing journey of our rescue dogs.
There are several ways for you to get involved, at several different stages of the rescue process.
Foster a dog in your home
Screen potential adopters
Transport dogs from A to B
Build relationships with shelters and veterinarians
Share your particular talents in technology, social media, fundraising, finance, graphic design, writing, photography, etc.
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Please complete a volunteer application today!
Foster
Perhaps the most rewarding, yet also the most challenging, volunteer opportunity is fostering a rescue dog in your home. Helping the dog adjust to being a part of a loving family, can be hard work and can take anywhere from 2 weeks to six months!
Foster home volunteers train, socialize, and closely observe and track the behaviors and the progress of a foster dog. You will decide when your foster dog is ready to be placed in a forever home, and having learned your foster dog’s personality, you will be better able to determine which qualified adopter is the right fit for your foster dog.
RRUS doesn’t just place a dog with whoever is next on the list; we use the screening process and the foster care process hand in hand to make sure the dog and all household members of the adoptive family, whether human, four-legged, winged, or whatever, are safe and can thrive together.
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Screen
Are you a phone person? Do you enjoy talking to new people? Then applicant screening might be the perfect volunteer opportunity.
All potential adopters and volunteers go through an extensive screening process which includes a thirty to forty-five minute phone interview with one of our active volunteers. This conversation helps verify information included on the application form, and gives the screener a sense of whether the potential volunteer or adopter would be a good fit for a rescued Rhodesian Ridgeback.
The screening process also includes checking an applicant’s references by making phone calls and asking questions provided, as well as doing a virtual or in-person home visit. Screening applicants is an important part of the rescue process and training is provided.
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Transport
Do you like to drive? Are you willing and able to transport a rescue dog in your vehicle? Then you might get involved as a transport volunteer.
Ridgebacks come into rescue all over the country, and sometimes the best foster home is not close by. RRUS does not use commercial dog transport services, but relies on the kindness of volunteers to move our dogs where they need to go.
For example, we’ve had dogs travel from Texas to Minnesota, Colorado to Missouri, Florida to New Jersey. It takes the dedication of RRUS Road Warriors to make this happen.
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Connect Services
Strong relationships with shelter managers, boarding facilities, and veterinarians are important for our organization, and you can help by building these bridges.
We want to be contacted when a shelter gets a lost or surrendered Rhodesian Ridgeback.
Educating shelter personnel about the breed and our process for placing dogs with adopters will ensure that these animals come to us so we can find them an appropriate home. Sometimes we have a situation where a dog needs to be temporarily placed into a boarding facility. This is easily done when volunteers have contacted facilities in their area and discussed temporary rescue boarding.
Additionally, connecting with veterinarians who offer rescue discounts helps stretch our donation dollars and help more dogs.
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Share Your Talent
RRUS is an all volunteer organization, with volunteers contributing their unique skills to the organization. This could mean writing copy for the website, taking photographs, creating a graphic design for a product to sell, reaching out to businesses for sponsorships, serving on the Finance Committee to oversee accounting, helping with special projects, coordinating transportation, sharing on social media, or any number of other ways.
We hope to hear from you soon and welcome you to the world of rescue!
