Community Programs
Where Lifesaving Starts Before the Shelter
AT OPH we believe the most effective way to save animals is not to rescue them from shelters, but to help prevent them from entering shelters in the first place.
Across the communities we serve, families struggle to access affordable veterinary care and spay/neuter services, shelters lack the resources they need, and rescue partners can face unexpected emergencies that put animals at risk. Our community programs are designed to address those challenges directly.
From providing accessible spay and neuter services to supporting shelters and rescue organizations during times of crisis, OPH works alongside communities to keep animals healthy, keep families together, and create more lifesaving opportunities.
Our community programs include:
Spay Day Everyday
Making Spay & Neuter More Accessible.
One of the most powerful tools we have to reduce shelter overcrowding is also one of the simplest: spay and neuter.
Through Spay Day Everyday, OPH helps make spay and neuter services more accessible to pet owners in communities where veterinary services may be limited or unaffordable. Working with our local shelter and rescue partners, we provide funding to cover the cost of spay/neuter services for owner animals in the community who might otherwise go unaltered.
Every surgery represents more than one animal helped. Preventing an unwanted litter can mean preventing puppies and kittens from entering already overcrowded shelters and reducing the number of animals who may face homelessness in the future.
Because prevention is the best form of lifesaving.
Community Paws Coalition
Building Stronger Communities. Saving More Lives.
Through the Community Paws Coalition (CPC) OPH partners with local shelters, animal control agencies, community organizations, veterinarians, volunteers, and residents to address the challenges facing animals in underserved communities.
Our work focuses on creating practical, sustainable solutions that improve outcomes for animals while supporting the people and organizations working on the front lines.
Through CPC, OPH provides:
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Shelter support and lifesaving transfers
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Affordable and accessible spay/neuter
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Targeted trap-neuter-vaccinate-return (TNVR) for community cats
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Pet retention and owner support
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Shelter operations and best-practice assistance
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Veterinary and animal-care resources
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Volunteer engagement and community outreach
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Supplies and other critical resources
The goal is not simply to move animals out of a shelter, it is to keep animals from ending up in the shelter and help communities build the capacity to save more animals themselves. By working together, we can address the causes of shelter overcrowding, strengthen local animal welfare systems, and create better outcomes for animals and the people who care about them.
Paws in Partnership Grants
Investing in Partners. Expanding Lifesaving.
Paws in Partnership Grants are designed to strengthen the lifesaving capacity of OPH partner animal shelters and rescue organizations.
Through Paws in Partnership Grants, OPH provides funding for specific, project-based initiatives that have the potential to increase lifesaving, improve animal outcomes, expand organizational capacity, or address barriers that prevent animals from finding positive outcomes.
We know that strong partnerships make stronger lifesaving networks. By helping our partners with progressive projects we can increase lifesaving outcomes together.
Shelter Smiles Initiative
Where welcoming spaces lead to brighter futures.
Shelter Smiles helps animal shelters become more welcoming, supportive, and uplifting environments for animals, staff, volunteers, and visitors. Through partnerships, hands-on support, and practical enhancements, the initiative focuses on improving the shelter experience, increasing comfort, and reducing stress for animals while supporting the people who care for them by:
Creating more welcoming shelter environments
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Improving the physical environment for animals and people
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Making shelters feel less institutional and more welcoming
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Looking at visitor-friendly layouts and presentation
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Making small environmental changes that could have a meaningful impact
Reducing stress for shelter animals
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Enrichment and activities
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Comfort items
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Humane, animal-centered shelter practices
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Creating opportunities for animals to experience positive interactions while they wait for adoption or transfer
Supporting shelter staff
The program recognizes that shelter people matter, too. It included ways to make the environment more supportive for staff and and to help them feel valued for the difficult lifesaving work they do.
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Opportunities to celebrate success
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Comfortable, well stocked break spaces
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Organizing solutions
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Volunteer support
Together, we can change the outcomes through our Community Programs.
When communities have the resources, relationships, and support they need, more animals stay out of shelters, and more animals live.