Grant-Fit Brief: SAMPLE

Prepared by Wren (AI-backed research). Every entry was checked on the funder's own live page on the date shown. Nothing here is copied from a list without being opened. Where a page was unclear, the brief says so instead of guessing.

Sample profile (made up but typical, used to show the format): a foster-based dog-and-cat rescue in the US, 501(c)(3), all volunteers, annual budget under $75k, no physical shelter, lists adoptable animals on Petfinder.

Checked: October 20, 2026.

Not eligible, and why that matters

Petfinder Foundation: Shelter Foster Support Grant (up to $2,000)

• Live page: petfinderfoundation.org/grant/shelter-foster-support-grant/
• The headline: up to $2,000, awarded monthly until funds run out.
• What the page says: "Foster based rescue groups are not eligible for the grant at this time."
• Verdict for this profile: skip it. A foster-based rescue would waste the application.

Oxbow Animal Health: Rescue Grant Program (small animals only)

• Live page: Oxbow rescue grant FAQs (checked 2026-10-20)
• The FAQ answer to "Do dogs or cats qualify?": "Unfortunately, we are not able to provide funding to dog-specific or cat-specific" organizations. (The rest of that answer is cut off on the page.)
• The main program URL (/rescue-grant-program/) now shows the site homepage, so the listing that grant databases still link to is stale.
• Verdict for this profile: skip it. Worth knowing only if you also take rabbits, guinea pigs, or other small animals.

Petfinder Foundation: general note

• The "Apply for a Grant" page says it lists "all the grants we have available right now", but on 2026-10-20 it showed no programs in the list. The individual program pages still say "Apply Now". Before spending time, check the grant portal or email foundation@petfinder.com.
• All Petfinder Foundation grants require: an active Petfinder membership with current listings, an EIN, being "financially self-sustaining" per your latest Form 990, monthly intake/adoption/euthanasia numbers, taking part in press releases, and a grant report with receipts and photos. One grant per program per year.

Eligible, or worth acting on

Petfinder Foundation: Dog Enrichment ($100 to $1,000)

• Live page: petfinderfoundation.org/grant/dog-enrichment/ (checked 2026-10-20)
• Rolling: "awarded on a monthly basis throughout the year until all funds are depleted."
• Use: enrichment for adoptable dogs (activities, toys, smells, sounds that reduce stress).
• Scale last year, per the page: 32 grants, $28,000 total, about $875 on average.
• Fit: no foster-based exclusion on the page. The general Petfinder Foundation conditions above apply.
• Effort: low. An online portal application.
• Caveat: see the note above about the empty list. Confirm the program is open before you apply.

Petco Love: the biggest name, mostly closed right now

• Live page: petcolove.org/for-partners/investment-opportunities (checked 2026-10-20)
• Animal Welfare Organizations (for groups whose primary purpose is sheltering and adoptions): the window was Feb 1 to Mar 31, 2026. Closed. Third-party summaries put it at $5k to $100k (not shown on this page).
• Access to Care (spay/neuter clinics, low-cost providers, TNR): Sep 1 to 30, 2026. Closed. Not this profile anyway.
• Love Stories (adopter stories, "earn up to $100,000"): "2027 dates to be announced."
• Open year-round, but narrow: Shelter Pet Cancer Treatment, Vaccinated & Loved (free community vaccine services), Disaster Relief (orgs hit by disasters).
• Prerequisite: Petco Love says it decides by "organizational performance" from an annual data report submitted in its Partner Portal. Helping Heroes and pet cancer cycles are by invitation only.
• Action for this profile: nothing to apply for today. Do submit the annual data report in the Partner Portal now, so you're eligible when the 2027 Animal Welfare window opens (expected around February, going by 2026). Watch for the Love Stories dates.

PEDIGREE Foundation: annual grants (dogs only)

• Live page: pedigreefoundation.org/shelters-grant/ (checked 2026-10-20)
• Says: "Our 2026 Grants Application is now Closed." Disaster relief grants are "open year round."
• Who: 501(c)(3) dog shelters and rescues (US and Canada). Per the foundation's own announcement, 2025 saw 94 grants totalling $1.2M, about $12.8k on average.
• Timing pattern: the 2025 cycle opened Feb 28, 2025 and the 2026 cycle about Mar 2, 2026, per its news posts. Expect late Feb / early Mar 2027.
• Action for this profile: sign up for their newsletter now. Prepare dog-program numbers (intake, adoptions, foster count) in January.

Two Mauds, Inc.: Primary Spay-Neuter Grants (built for small groups)

• Live page: twomauds.org/apply (checked 2026-10-20)
• Qualifications, quoted from the page: located "in (or near) our granting region" (Appalachia, per their site); "a 501c3 for at least 2 years"; "at least 4 board members; at least 3 are independent"; "a budget or revenues of $250,000 or less."
• Window: "Applications open March 1 and are due July 31". Decisions in November, funds in late December. Closed now. Next window: Mar 1 to Jul 31, 2027.
• Also Matching Grants, with no deadline: if your local municipality funds your public spay-neuter work, Two Mauds matches up to $5,000 a year ($10,000 lifetime). Only for existing grantees in good standing.
• Fit for this profile: only if you're in or near Appalachia and run spay-neuter for owned pets or community cats (TNR). Third-party summaries say Two Mauds does not fund vetting of animals already in a rescue's care. That line isn't on the apply page, so ask them before you count on it.
• Check before applying: the board-independence rule (3 of 4 independent) catches many small rescues where the board is family.

BISSELL Pet Foundation: not a grant you apply for, a network you join first

• Live pages: bissellpetfoundation.org/grant-information/ and /partners-for-pets/ (checked 2026-10-20)
• How it works: BPF funds through programs (Empty the Shelters, Fix the Future spay/neuter, crisis and disaster, transport, microchipping, vaccines, heartworm). Being an approved Partners for Pets member "is a preliminary requirement for working with BISSELL Pet Foundation."
• Fit: Partners for Pets explicitly accepts "foster-based rescues" (501(c)(3), within the 50 states, cats or dogs). But Empty the Shelters, the adoption-grant event, is "primarily suited for organizations with a physical shelter building."
• Fix the Future pays contracted vets directly; it's not cash to you.
• Action for this profile: join Partners for Pets now. It's free and takes three portal steps, and it puts you on the list for program emails and spay/neuter or crisis help. Don't expect a cash grant from it directly.

ASPCA: 2026 New World Screwworm Direct Support Grant. OPEN NOW, closes Oct 31

• Live page: aspcapro.org, 2026 ASPCA New World Screwworm Direct Support Grant (checked 2026-10-20)
• Window: "Aug. 19, 2026 at 9 a.m. ET – Oct. 31, 2026 at 6 p.m. ET or until funds are expended, whichever comes first." Reviewed on a rolling basis, so apply early.
• Amounts: up to $45,000 for NWS prevention and treatment medication (per-animal basis); up to $5,000 for Veterinarian of Record costs; up to $750 per infested animal for assessment and treatment. Covers expenses from June 3, 2026 on.
• Who: organizations in states with USDA-designated infested zones, or in states adjacent to them. Dogs, cats, equines. Highest priority goes to organizations operating within the active zones.
• Must have: a staff vet or an executed (or in-progress) contract with a Veterinarian of Record. Board of 3+ members with a majority independent; the chair and treasurer unpaid. Good standing with the Secretary of State. State charitable registration if requesting $25k or more.
• Gotcha: "Applications cannot be saved in process or edited after submission." Prepare everything in the companion document first.
• Fit for this profile: only if your state is in or next to a designated zone. Check the USDA map linked from the page today. If you are, this is the one thing to do this week. (In Texas? See what else Texas rescues can use this season.)

RedRover: Safe Housing grants (up to $60,000), a real fit if you can find a partner

• Live page: redrover.org/relief-dv/dv-safe-housing-grants/ (checked 2026-10-20)
• What it funds: "build or renovate spaces dedicated to housing survivor's pets, begin a foster program to care for survivor's pets, pay for temporary boarding", plus routine or emergency vet care for pets of people entering a shelter. Boarding, medical, and deposit costs are covered "for a maximum of two years", and they expect you to have a plan to fund it yourself after that.
• Who: a registered nonprofit that is "an established domestic violence organization, or an established animal organization, interested in expanding their services to help domestic violence survivors keep their pets." US only.
• The catch: you must have a partner. An animal org needs at least one domestic violence organization, with a written MOU that sets out each side's duties ("not simply a statement of mutual aid"). You also need a vet partner, or the ability to provide vet care yourself.
• Foster rule: "if starting a foster program, there is no daily charge to care for the pet."
• Can't be used for: salaries, training, real estate, advertising, or "existing programs that are not expanding their capacity." New organizations can't apply.
• They prefer "a minimum of six months of data on the actual need" (families and animals) before you apply.
• Deadlines: March 1, June 1, September 1. Decisions within 45 days. The page says March applications are accepted through Monday, March 2. Next: Mar 1, 2027.
• Free help: DontForgetThePets.org (RedRover + Greater Good Charities) offers trainings, handbooks, and one-on-one coaching on the application.
• Action for this profile: this is a 4-month project, not a form. Call your local DV shelter this month and ask whether survivors turn pets away. If they do, start counting now, so you have the data and an MOU by March.

Hugs & Kisses Animal Fund: built for "Mom & Pop" rescues, if you're 5+ years old

• Live page: store.thepetshow.com/pages/grant-application (the fund's grants page sits on The Pet Show's store site; checked 2026-10-20)
• Who, quoted from the page: "We only offer grants to 501(c)3 all volunteer organizations, with no administrative costs/salaries. We also require a 5 year track record from the date of your IRS Determination Letter."
• How: download the PDF application, then mail it or email it with the supporting documents listed on the form (address and email are on the page). Rolling, with no deadline listed. "Please allow up to 60 days for a response". If it's urgent, say why and by when.
• Amount: not stated on the page. A search-engine AI summary said "up to $1,000"; that isn't on the fund's own page, so don't plan around it.
• Fit for this profile: yes, if your IRS letter is at least 5 years old and no one is paid. This is the cleanest match to an all-volunteer foster rescue in this brief. A younger group should skip it for now and note the date it turns 5.
• Effort: low to medium. A paper-style application plus documents, with no portal.

Calendar: what opens when (for a foster-based rescue)

Free directories worth bookmarking

So you don't pay anyone for what's free.

• ASPCApro "Other Animal Welfare Funders" page (aspcapro.org, Grants menu)
• AAWA grant database (theaawa.org), reviewed quarterly per its own description
• HumanePro grants page (humanepro.org)
• RedRover "Additional Resources for Individuals and Organizations" (redrover.org): a short list of funders for organizations, plus vet-care aid for individuals

How this sample was made

9 funders (Petfinder Foundation, Petco Love, PEDIGREE Foundation, Two Mauds, ASPCA, BISSELL Pet Foundation, Oxbow, RedRover, Hugs & Kisses Animal Fund), each opened and read on its own page on 2026-10-20. Found: one "available right now" page with an empty list; one program that excludes foster-based rescues in a single easy-to-miss line; one program whose main page now just shows the site homepage; one "grant" that is really a network you join first; four major programs closed until 2027; one program open now, closing Oct 31, 2026; and one large grant (up to $60k) that a foster rescue can win, but only with four months of groundwork. And one AI search summary that gave a dollar figure the funder's own page doesn't, while leaving out its 5-year eligibility rule. That gap between a list and the live pages is what the brief is for.

Wren is AI-backed research and can make mistakes, so every entry has the link it was checked against. Check the deadline yourself before you submit anything.

Get a free brief for your rescue