Vancouver Humane Society
This Valentine’s Day, choose to send an e-card to someone you love when you donate to the VHS on their behalf! Your thoughtful donation will go towards improving the lives of animals, while letting someone special know you’re thinking of them.
When you donate below, choose to make a donation in honour of someone special and pick a thoughtful e-card that will be sent directly to their inbox. Simply click on the “in honour of” button in the “Dedication” section of the online donation form.
Donate to help Olga this Valentine’s Day
When food-motivated kittly Olga lost interest in her food, Linda quickly took her to the animal hospital. There, vets determined that Olga is suffering from painful cysts on her teeth and will need dental surgery to remove them. Without the surgery, Olga is at risk of serious infection, and may stop eating altogether.
Linda is a single mother managing a disability while providing for her child and Olga. Linda told the VHS she adopted Olga when she was going through a difficult divorce. “She has been a huge source of love and companionship,” Linda said.
When you donate today to help Olga, you can choose to make a donation in honour of someone special and send a thoughtful e-card to their inbox.
Simply click on the “in honour of” button in the “Dedication” section of the online donation form. 
Can you help Olga get the care she needs to come home to Linda?
Every night, Handsome the cat curls up in bed nose-to-nose with his guardian Marlena and purrs her to sleep. When Marlena wakes each morning, Handsome is snoring peacefully by her feet.
Handsome has been Marlena’s steady support since she left home due to difficult circumstances at 18 years old. She took sweet Handsome in from a relative who could no longer care for him five years ago and the pair have been inseparable since.
Recently, Marlena noticed Handsome was frantically grooming between his legs while sitting by the litter box. When she approached him, he growled at Marlena in pain. Terrified for her friend, Marlena rushed Handsome to the vet.
There, Handsome was treated through catheterization for a urinary blockage twice, but the procedures were unsuccessful. Now veterinary staff have recommended urgent PU (perineal urethrostomy) surgery for Handsome to save his life.
Marlena is distraught. Having already spent all she can spare on Handsome’s initial treatments, she cannot afford the estimated $3,500 his surgery will cost.
Marlena can’t imagine a life without her boy. “Coming home and not seeing him while he’s been in the emergency vet has been heartbreaking and I’m hoping he’s not too scared or stressed being there,” Marlena told the VHS.
Your gift today can help Handsome get the life-saving surgery he needs to return to his home with beloved Marlena.
Can you donate towards Handsome’s life-saving care today?
Learn how your gift makes a difference for animals
This year, allies like you called for compassionate changes for farmed animals, animals used in entertainment, animals in captivity, and wild animals.
As 2024 wraps up, your gift to animals in need today will create a more peaceful tomorrow.
Your gift today can help achieve our ultimate wish: a kinder future for all animals!
Your gift of $45 = 100 copies of PlantUniversity brochures
Brochures like the “Beginner’s Guide to Plant-Based Eating” are distributed to libraries, immigration centres, community and culture centres and more. Your gift allows the VHS to create helpful content on shifting towards a plant-based diet in multiple languages.
Your gift of $50 = Veterinary exam for one pet in need
The VHS’s McVitie program helps fund life-saving veterinary care for pets of low-income families. Helping a pet get the urgent care they need begins with a veterinary examination.
Your gift of $100.24 = 8,000 animal allies reached
You can amplify your advocacy by supporting wide-reaching online messaging, which connects more people with calls for meaningful actions to protect animals during critical policy-making periods.
Your gift of $741 = Bus ad for one month
Bus ads in the Metro Vancouver area can be viewed upwards of a million times! Thought-provoking messages direct viewers to learn more about the many benefits of shifting towards a plant-based diet over at PlantUniversity.ca.
Your gift of $1,000 = Pet first aid training for 10 service workers
Pet first aid training for service workers helps address the urgent needs of pets in the Downtown Eastside and other communities where people face barriers to accessing care. After attending a pet first aid training, workers have tools to treat and monitor minor injuries in the communities they service.
Your gift of $1,600 = Say no to rodeo billboard for 12 weeks
Billboards have a huge impact on showcasing messages to many different people. A billboard that shares the realities of rodeo helps build on the momentum of the public’s increasing opposition to inhumane rodeo events.
Thank you so much for your generosity this season!
Vancouver Humane Society is partnering with The Happy Herd Farm Sanctuary this Giving Tuesday to make life better for animals!
Between now and December 3, you can donate directly to our joint campaign. We are also looking for businesses and individuals to support this campaign through matched giving donations. Check out our sponsorship package for more details.
Every supporter that donates towards the Giving Tuesday campaign will be entered into a prize draw for the chance to win a $25 gift card to Vegan Supply.
The Happy Herd provides a loving home to 60 animals rescued from the farming industry.
Happy Herd cares for 60 animals including pigs, cows, goats, chickens, sheep, cats, and one dog! Each cherished animal has their own name and personality, and spends their days enjoying life with their fellow herd family members. Happy Herd is currently spending approximately $10,000 a month on food, shelter, and veterinary expenses for the animals.
Your generous support of this campaign will have a lasting impact on the lives of the animals who call The Happy Herd home.
Since 1984, the Vancouver Humane Society has been supporting individuals, organizations, and governments to take action for the welfare and rights of animals influenced by human activities. Whether advocating against rodeo cruelty, providing emergency vet funds for companion animals in low income homes, offering resources to help people and businesses choose plant-based options, or lobbying for policies that minimize harm to animals, VHS is dedicated to ending animal suffering in all forms. All donations to VHS will go directly toward vital programs and advocacy work in order to create a kinder world for all animals.
Thank you so much for your support of both of our organizations!
Finn’s terrifying tale turned happy ending
Curious puppy Finn, wound up in a life-threatening situation with some socks recently. Luckily, thanks to supporters like you, the McVitie Fund was there to help.
When Finn’s guardian, Ginny, left her room to take clothes to the laundry, Finn took the opportunity to investigate a few socks that had fallen out of Ginny’s laundry hamper.
When the pair left the house for Finn’s usually treasured walk, Finn stopped, sat down, and threw up two socks.
After they came back inside, Finn still appeared lethargic and could not drink water. Ginny rushed him to an emergency veterinary hospital where initial x-rays showed Finn’s intestines were obstructed with socks. To survive, Finn would need $2,500 to cover diagnostics, surgery to remove the obstruction, and a three day stay at the veterinary hospital.
Ginny was distraught. Since rescuing Finn she has delighted in caring for him and spending her days by his side. The pair have become inseperable, and Finn’s loss would be devastating.
Difficult circumstances mean Ginny is currently living in temporary housing and had no funds available for Finn’s surgery. A trusted worker at Ginny’s temporary housing helped connect her with the McVitie Fund and she quickly filled out an application for Finn.
Because of supporters like you, the McVitie Fund was able to provide funding to get Finn the life-saving care he needed.
Ginny was astonished and overwhelmed with gratitude when she heard this news. She wrote to us, “thank you so very much!!! I’m so grateful and relieved!!! I love my puppy very much, this is wonderful news.”
Finn’s surgery went well, and after his hospital stay, Ginny got to take her dear friend home to recover and get a good night’s sleep by her side.
“Due to your support, he is thriving, happy and healthy again. I keep all the socks in a closed basket and out of reach, as this was a terribly traumatic experience for him and I, but you got us through it,” Ginny wrote.
“I truly appreciate the generous funding support you provided and will give back to the Humane Society when I’m able to. Thank you again from the bottom of my heart for your compassion and financial help in our time of need.”
Finn and Ginny are just one of hundreds of families helped thanks to thoughtful gifts from supporters like you this year. The McVitie Fund relies on your generosity to continue supporting low-income pet guardians across B.C. seeking emergency help for their beloved animal friends. Could you support families like Ginny’s with a donation today?
Should you have any trouble making a donation on this page, please click here. In the Message to VHS portion of the donation form, you can write McVitie to let us know this gift is for animals in need of urgent care.
The sad truth is, we can’t keep up
Every day, animal guardians desperate to save their pets’ lives reach out to the Vancouver Humane Society’s McVitie Fund program for urgent veterinary support. With applications to the McVitie Fund having increased more than tenfold since 2020, demand has far outstretched the donations we’re able to bring in to help animals in need.
Recently we spent $1,600 to help sweet Lily, a dog who required emergency care. I’m sharing Donna and Lily’s story with you in the hope that you can help retroactively cover the cost of Lily’s care so we can continue saying yes to more animals like her today.
Donna’s application to the McVitie Fund struck me deeply. Her words—“I really need help. I’m praying that we can get help”—echoed with such raw urgency and fear. I could almost feel her trembling hands and racing heart as she typed them.
Donna explained in her application that she is a senior who struggles with her health and lives paycheque to paycheque on disability payments.
When a friend could no longer care for Lily, Donna happily offered to take the darling pup into her home. Lily has since become fast friends with Donna’s cat, Stripey, and Donna’s daughter, Katie. Katie has special needs and lives with and is cared for by Donna.
Donna rushed to the vet having noticed a dip in Lily’s energy along with bloody-looking discharge. There she learned Lily was suffering from a pyometra infection.
The chance of a pyometra infection resolving itself without surgery is extremely low, and if surgery is not performed quickly, the infection will often prove fatal. I called Donna and the vet to let them know, yes, we will cover the cost of Lily’s life-saving surgery.
A few days later Donna called me, her voice full of joy and relief. She let me know that Lily was recovering well from her surgery. Both Katie and Stripey had rushed to greet Lily with kisses as soon as she got home.
Through tears of gratitude Donna said, “a million thank yous are not enough for what you have done, and my gratitude will never be enough! Thank you for saving my Lily!“
Donna’s plea is mine too: on behalf of low-income pet guardians across B.C. who find their pets in crisis, can you help? Could you spare any amount and be the reason a pet returns home healthy this fall?
With gratitude,
Brooklyn Fowler-Moros, Program Manager – McVitie Fund
Several hundred residents of the Downtown Eastside community visited the Because They Matter table in Pigeon Park on Sunday, July 21, all eager to pick up high-quality supplies for their beloved pets. Event participants also spoke with many pet guardians about accessing the VHS’s free veterinary care assistance program.
Each person who connected with the team had a unique journey, and all had incredible bonds with their pets.
Here are some of the amazing people and pets who visited the Vancouver Humane Society’s table in Pigeon Park and shared their shared their stories of resilience and unconditional love.
In all, the VHS team and event participants handed out thousands of pet supplies and hundreds of pamphlets about the Vancouver Humane Society’s veterinary assistance program.
The VHS’s veterinary support program helps animals get the care they need while staying with their loving families. The need for this program is growing every year, and it is essential that this need is met to make sure loved animals get the care they require without having to be surrendered to the already overflowing shelter and rescue system. The VHS’s veterinary support program is only possible through the help of donations from animal lovers like you.
Can you make a donation toward VHS’s $15,750 Because They Matter fundraising goal to help animals and the people who love them?
Help Nylah recover from dangerous bleach poisoning!
Nylah is a sweet young dog with a penchant for adventure. Unfortunately, this has landed her in a difficult situation as she accidentally got into a cupboard and knocked over a bottle of bleach. Her guardian, Hope, made sure to clean up the spill and wash Nylah’s body thoroughly. She was advised to monitor her for any adverse symptoms.
Nylah initially seemed unharmed, but closer to the end of the day she began displaying symptoms of discomfort followed by vomiting and a bloody bowel movement. Hope rushed Nylah to the emergency vet where they found that she is suffering from pancreatitis due to toxicity.
Hope is a full-time student who is also the caretaker and guardian for her family. Her limited funds mean she is unable to afford the costly in-hospital care that Nylah needs.
An anonymous donor is currently generously matching all donations toward the VHS’s McVitie Fund, up to $25,000! This means your donation will have double the impact. Can you donate today toward Nylah’s life-saving medical care?
Your donation to help Milo the cat will be DOUBLED
Spending every day by Milo’s side, Christine was quick to notice his trouble urinating and loss of interest in playing with his favourite mouse toy.
Troubled, Christine rushed Milo to the vet where it was discovered that Milo is suffering from urinary crystals. He will urgently need to be treated with hospitalization, urinary cathererization, and IV fluids.
Christine has had to make many adjustments to her life since she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Through it all, her love of Milo has never wavered.
Despite painful days and uncertainty about her future, being able to care for Milo and keep him happy and healthy gives Christine a sense of peace.
Unable to work, Christine’s only income is received through the very limited Persons with Disabilities payments she receives. Having spent what little she had to spare on determining the cause of Milo’s suffering, Christine has run out of funds for his emergency treatment.
With Milo in need, Christine can’t sleep. “To me, he’s family,” she told the VHS.
An anonymous donor is currently generously matching all donations toward the VHS’s McVitie Fund, up to $25,000! This means your donation will have double the impact.
Could you please consider donating towards Milo’s life-saving care today? Your gift today is a gesture of love that will help return Milo home to Christine.