Volunteer Abroad
On your next vacation you could be feeding sick or injured wildlife at a sanctuary in Namibia, patrolling a beach in Costa Rica to protect sea turtle nests, or assisting a vet with animal treatments in Mongolia.
Numerous opportunities exist for individuals, couples and families who want to volunteer some of their vacation time helping animals. To find a volunteer opportunity, you can contact one of the many non-profit recruiting agencies that specialize in international volunteer work, or you can make your own arrangements through the individual organizations offering volunteer assignments.
A volunteer vacation can be free or cost several thousand dollars depending on the type of accommodation and services provided (some offer local tours and recreational activities, some don’t). Generally, lodging and food is included in the fee but flight costs are extra. Vacation volunteering for animals can be done in as little as a day to as long as a year, but regardless of the length of service, the memories and satisfaction gained are guaranteed to last a lifetime!
Following are some of the opportunities available for those who wish to volunteer for animals while on vacation. Please note that these activities are presented only as typical examples of what kinds of experiences exist; WSPA does not necessarily endorse these particular projects. Traveling in unfamiliar locations – especially in remote areas – can be dangerous, and as a result, all potential travels should be thoroughly researched and prepared for.
We will be adding more volunteer opportunities from WSPA’s member societies around the world, so check back soon for new additions.
© Photo credited to WSPA/Kate Blaszak
Anguilla
Anguilla Animal Rescue Foundation (AARF)
Anguilla Animal Rescue Foundation operates an adoption centre for homeless animals. Volunteer duties include cleaning crates, exercising and cuddling with animals. Contact Suzie at axasuzie@anguillanet.com or aarinfo@aarf.ai to arrange visit.
Location: Morlens Veterinary Hospital, Long Path, Sandy Hill, Anguilla
Dates: Year round (Monday through Friday, 10am to 1pm)
Duration: Any
Age range: 18 and older
Cost: None but items such as small collars, leashes and toys are always needed and appreciated.
Argentina
Wildlife Sanctuary and Rehabilitation Center
El Puma Ecological Park nurses sick and injured animals back to health before releasing them back to the wild. Volunteer duties include feeding animals and cleaning and repairing animal enclosures.
Location: near Posadas
Dates: year round
Duration: 2 – 6 weeks
Age range: 18 - 80
Cost: $1,290 for 2 weeks, $250 for each additional week
Special skills: basic Spanish required
Aruba
Donkey Sanctuary Aruba
The Donkey Sanctuary cares for sick, injured and abused Aruban donkeys and also healthy donkeys who are in danger of being hit by cars. Volunteers will feed the donkeys, clean up after them, replace water in drinking troughs, educate visitors to the sanctuary, and help sell merchandise in the gift shop.
Location: Sta. Lucia near the Ayo Rock Formations, Aruba
Dates: Year-round - 9 am to 12:30 pm Mon thru Fri and 10 am to 3 pm on weekends
Duration: Any
Age Range: 18-80
Cost: None (Volunteers arrange their flights, accommodation and transportation to and from the Sanctuary)
Australia
Koala Sanctuary
Volunteer at the world’s largest koala sanctuary, home to 130 koalas. Duties include collecting and preparing food, feeding the animals and cleaning their enclosures.
Location: 30 minutes from Brisbane
Dates: starting first Saturday of each month
Duration: 2 – 4 weeks
Cost: from $513 for 2 weeks
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Bahamas
Humane Society of Grand Bahama Animal Shelter
Humane Society of Grand Bahama welcomes visiting volunteers and can always use a hand for many tasks, including walking dogs, socializing dogs/puppies, cats/kittens, and bathing dogs, to name a few. Vets and vet techs are welcome too! Contact the HSGB at 242.352.2477 or via email at info@hs-gb.org.
Location: Freeport, Grand Bahama Island
Dates: Year round
Duration: Any
Age Range: 18-80
Cost: None but items such as toys and treats, flea/tick preventatives and even old towels are always needed and appreciated
Belize
Cat Sanctuary & Humane Society
P.A.W. Cat Sanctuary & Humane Society provides food, shelter, sterilization procedures and medical care for homeless cats. Volunteer duties include feeding and playing with pets, and simply helping out with a few chores.
Location: island of Caye Caulker, 45 minutes from Belize City
Dates: open
Duration: contact P.A.W. for details
Cost: for a small fee, plus only 1 hour of volunteer work per day, you will receive beach-front lodging
Borneo
Wildlife Center
Matang wildlife center aims to rehabilitate and release orangutans back to this part of Malaysian Borneo. Volunteers visiting the center prepare food for the animals, clean out cages, help build structures and toys and help with rehabilitation.
Location: Sabah & Sarawak
Dates: starting 5th of each month
Duration: 2 – 4 weeks
Cost: $1,775 for 2 weeks, $2,495 for 4 weeks
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Botswana
Veterinary Adventure
Maun Animal Welfare Society works to address the overpopulation of companion animals in the Maun area. Volunteer duties include helping with the sterilization of female dogs (many of whom are pregnant) and vaccinating against rabies and distemper.
Location: Maun
Dates: year round
Duration: 1 – 4 weeks
Age range: 18 - 75
Cost: $2,943
Special skills: need not be a veterinarian to participate but some animal care experience required
Brazil
Pink River Dolphin Conservation Project
This project takes you to South America to help contribute to research and conservation work to prevent the demise of river dolphins. The work follows the daily lives of the 300+ recognizable dolphins in the local population. Research on the dolphins includes recording new births and monitoring the development of each calf until it is weaned, through adolescence and as a young adult.
Location: Mamiraua reserve in the Solimoes River in the Amazon rainforest
Dates: year round
Duration: 2 – 4 weeks
Cost: $1,979 for 2 weeks
Humpback Whale Conservation Project
The Brazilian Humpback Whale Project was established in 1988 to study and protect humpback whales in their mating and calving season in the Abrolhos Bank, southern Bahia state, Brazil. Volunteers spend much of their time out on the sea (weather permitting), where they observe whales, collect data on their behavior, conduct bio-acoustic monitoring and develop a picture identification library.
Location: Praia do Forte in Bahia state
Dates: between July 15th and October 15th to coincide with whale migration season
Duration: 2 – 6 weeks
Cost: $1,324
River Otter Conservation Project
For more than two decades, the research base, with the help of ecovolunteers, has discovered many interesting and important facts for the conservation of this species. Weather depending, fieldwork will include analysis of the otter’s frequency at the shelters, monitoring nests, ethological studies and eating habits. Volunteers will also be asked to care for rescued animals and maintain their shelters, file reports and perform lab work.
Location: Piri Lake, Brazil
Dates: year round, starting on Sundays
Duration: 1 week minimum but at least 2 weeks recommended
Cost: from $575
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Cambodia
Sanctuary for Rescued Bears
Volunteer at a sanctuary in Cambodia, home to 80 bears rescued from poachers, the black market and businesses that use bears for entertainment. Duties include feeding bears, enriching their environment and cleaning and repairing enclosures and holding pens.
Location: 1 hour from Phnom Penh
Dates: starting every Sunday year round
Duration: 1 – 4 weeks
Age limit: at least 21
Cost: $552 for 1 week to $1,413 for 4 weeks
Costa Rica
The McKee Foundation
McKee offers advanced spay and neuter surgery training for dogs and cats, and offers training and support to community leaders, animal organizations and volunteers on how to set up low cost, high volume spay and neuter clinics in their communities. Volunteers need to be veterinarians (Spanish speakers preferred) who can perform spay and neuter surgeries.
Location: Not fixed - there are McKee groups in different locations around the country
Dates: Year round, with the exception of December and January
Duration: 1 week
Cost: $170 per veterinarian for spay and neuter surgery training which is required before participation in clinics
Other: McKee can help arrange an agenda for volunteer vets to participate in spay neuter clinics organized by McKee groups or other animal organizations. Spanish speaking vets are preferred so they are able to contact organizations directly once in the country.
Turtle Conservation Project
Play an important role in preserving a critically endangered species, the leatherback turtle, whose numbers have been decimated by poaching. Volunteers patrol turtle beaches, monitor nests and record data.
Location: various locations on the Pacific or Caribbean coast depending on time of the year
Dates: twice monthly starting dates year round
Duration: 1 – 12 weeks
Age limit: at least 17
Cost: $895 for 1 week $300 for each additional week
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Ecuador
Animal Rescue Center
Thousands of birds, monkeys, tortoises, bears and other animals are illegal caught each year in Ecuador and sold on the black market. The animals that are recovered need to be rehabilitated before they can be reintroduced to the wild. Volunteers at the rescue center clean enclosures, build new enclosures, feed the animals, monitor the animals' behavior and assist with ongoing reintroduction projects.
Location: Rio Napo in the Amazon region or on the coast of El Oro province near Guayaquil
Dates: year round
Duration: 2 weeks – 6 months
Age limit: at least 18
Cost: costs vary depending on location
Amazon Animal Rescue Center
The Amazon Animal Rescue Center is responsible for the active rescue and rehabilitation of a wide variety of wild animals from unhealthy and/or illegal situations, victims of animal trafficking, mistreatment or habitat destruction. Volunteers participate in activities such as feeding the animals, cleaning the enclosures and collecting wild fruits and leaves to include in the animals’ diets.
Location: Andean mountains of Ecuador, 1 hour from Puyo
Dates: starts every Monday
Duration: 1 – 12 weeks
Cost: from $425 per week
Galapagos Giant Tortoise Conservation Project
The Giant Galapagos Tortoise research center, operated by the Galapagos National Park Service and the Darwin Foundation, helps to safeguard the future of these unique and magnificent species. Volunteers play a vital role in helping feed the baby and adult tortoises, cleaning and maintaining their enclosures, taking care of the eggs so they are in the best possible condition for when they hatch and monitoring the health and growth of the tortoises.
Location: Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
Dates: starting first Monday of each month
Duration: 1 – 8 weeks
Age limit: at least 17
Cost: from $1,489
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Ghana
Veterinary Clinic
City vet clinics in Ghana deal with diseases that have been eradicated in the West and treat pets such as dogs and cats, as well as small backyard animals like goats and chickens. Shadowing local vets, volunteers receive experience with vaccinations, operations, lab work, post-mortems and routine treatment of domestic farm animals and pets.
Location: Accra or Kumasi
Dates: year round
Duration: 2 weeks – 12 months
Age range: 16 - 70
Cost: from $2,395
Special skills: veterinary experience not required
Greece
Turtle Conservation Project
Lakonikos, Greece is perhaps best known as an important nesting area for loggerhead sea turtles in the Mediterranean. Volunteers participating on this project will engage in daily morning surveys to record nesting activity and protect turtle nests against predation by mammals and inundation by sea water. Volunteers will also provide conservation information to overseas visitors and the local community.
Location: Bay of Lakonikos in southern Greece
Dates: start anytime between June 10th and September 15th
Duration: 2 – 12 weeks
Cost: $1,620 for 2 weeks to $5,490 for 12 weeks
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Guatemala
AWARE (Animal Welfare Association Rescue/Education)
AWARE rescues, rehabilitates, sterilizes, and adopts animals. For volunteer duties, please refer to website.
Location: Sumpango, Sacatepequez about 30 minutes from La Antigua, Guatemala
Dates: Year round
Duration: 2 week minimum if staying on site
Age range: 18 and older
Cost: $5.00 a day donation per person to help off set costs of electricity, gas, water and maintenance. Volunteers make their own travel arrangements. AWARE can help with taxi services within the country.
No-Kill Animal Shelter
The Animal Welfare Association of Guatemala operates a shelter and veterinary clinic where it rescues and rehabilitates domestic animals, currently caring for 200 dogs and 100 cats. Volunteers at the shelter build dog runs, put up fences and bathe, brush and walk dogs.
Location: between San Lucas and Chimaltenango, just off Pan-American Highway
Dates: year round
Duration: minimum 2 weeks if staying on-site
Cost: $5.00 per day for lodging, food extra
Special skills: basic Spanish required
Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center
Volunteer at a rescue center offering care and rehabilitation to wild animals that have been captured and sold on the black market. The sanctuary for these animals operates with the aim to release them back into their natural habitat once fully recovered. Daily tasks are varied but include caring for the wildlife, monitoring behavior and feeding. Volunteers may also take part in veterinary medical treatment, release of animals and wildlife surveys.
Location: near Flores
Dates: starting first Monday of every month
Duration: 2 – 6 weeks
Age limit: at least 18
Cost: $730 for 2 weeks to $1,314 for 6 weeks
Sea Turtle and Caiman Conservation Project
Based on the Pacific coast of Guatemala volunteers at this project assist in conducting nightly patrols of area beaches in search of nesting sea turtles, collection and burial of eggs in the hatchery and collection of research data. Volunteers also have the option to take part in the caiman captive breeding program, mangrove reforestations, educational activities in area schools and other community projects.
Location: Hawaii in Guayacapan, Santa Rosa
Dates: starting first Monday of every month
Duration: 1 – 8 weeks
Age limit: at least 18
Cost: from $699
India
Animal Rescue
Urbanization has taken hold of India, leading to an increase in the size of urban areas, and as a result of this, the country’s animal population is suffering. The changing environment is unfamiliar and unfriendly for the animals, leaving them far more vulnerable to disease and mistreatment. Volunteers for this project help rescue animals, including donkeys, dogs, cats, cows, elephants, monkeys and camels, and assist with adoptions, vaccination and sterilizations.
Location: Jaipur City, Rajasthan
Dates: one start date per month (see website for details)
Duration: 2 – 8 weeks
Age limit: at least 18
Cost: $1,242 for 2 weeks to $2,851 for 8 weeks
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Kenya
Elephant Sanctuary
The Mwaluganje Elephant Sanctuary is a community-based initiative that was launched to reduce the increasing human / elephant conflicts in the area and provide a safe haven for the elephants. More than 200 families have voluntarily contributed land to the reserve, agreeing not to farm this important elephant habitat. Volunteer duties may include elephant identification research, observing herd behavior and welfare, making elephant dung paper, and many other tasks involving the restoration and maintenance of the sanctuary.
Location: Mwaluganje
Dates: starting June 28, August 23, September 13, October 11, November 29
Duration: 2 weeks
Cost: from $1,954
Monkey Conservation Project
This project’s aim is to conserve and protect the Angolan Colobus monkey and its habitat, to promote the welfare of primates and to reduce the impact of human development on the environment. Volunteer duties may include removing vegetation from power lines to prevent monkeys from being electrocuted, repairing or installing monkey bridges over the road, conducting monkey surveys, removing snares from forests and helping with animal rescues.
Location: Diani Beach on Kenya’s coast, just south of Mombasa
Dates: year round
Duration: 3 – 4 weeks
Cost: $2,047 for 3 weeks to $2,486 for 4 weeks
Mexico
Animal Shelter
The Humane Society of Cozumel Island operates an animal shelter, a free spay & neuter campaign and animal adoption program. Volunteers walk, bath and feed the 30 plus adult dogs, numerous puppies and 50-60 cats and kittens that reside at the shelter.
Location: Cozumel
Dates: year round
Cost: none
Conciencia y Proteccion Animal La Cienega
Conciencia y Proteccion Animal La Cienega operates a sanctuary and shelter where they provide food, shelter and medical care for homeless animals. They also re-home domestic animals and re-release wild animals into their native habitat. Volunteer duties include feeding, cleaning, and walking animals; helping with rehabilitation of animals; assisting in sterilization procedures and vaccinations.
Location: San José Iturbide, Guanajuato, Mexico
Dates: Year round
Duration: 2 weeks
Age range: 18-50 years
Cost: None but items such as medicines, medical equipment, leashes, and collars are appreciated.
Gente Por La Defensa Animal, A.C. (GEPDA)
GEPDA’s main areas of work include: cruelty and abuse cases, legal advice and support, legislation, humane education, and adoptions. Volunteer duties include: meeting GEPDA´s representatives to learn how to fundraise for animals in Mexico; networking with US citizens living in Mexico who might be interested in supporting GEPDA; translating documents (English to Spanish); and visiting rescued dogs/cats in foster homes.
Location: Mexico City
Dates: Year round
Duration: Any
Age range: Any
Cost: None but non-monetary donations such as dog/cat food, gas vouchers, airline miles to transport animals to their new homes, rescue and adoption equipment including kennels, traps, microchips, chains, collars, muzzles, used vans, and office supplies like digital cameras, DVD player, TV, computers, laptops, movie projectors are appreciated.
Veterinary Hospital Project
This volunteer placement operates out of a special hospital for both wild and domesticated animals. The center works in conjunction with the local emergency service that delivers injured, mistreated and abandoned animals to the center, either for permanent residence and care or as part of a rehabilitation process before they are released back into the wild.
Location: Guadalajara
Dates: year round
Duration: 1 week to 12 months
Age limit: at least 16
Cost: from $1,595
Special skills: prior animal care experience not required
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Mongolia
Veterinary Medicine Project
The AMAR Pet Hospital in Ulaanbaatar treats all kinds of pets and animals such as dogs, cats, turtles, birds, small mammals and race horses. Volunteers work alongside the local veterinary staff and have the opportunity to assist them with basic treatments, observe surgery and gain experience of diseases rarely seen in the West.
Location: Ulaanbaatar
Dates: year round
Duration: minimum 2 weeks
Age limit: high school student on up
Cost: from $1,995 for 2 weeks
Special skills: prior animal care experience not required
Namibia
Wildlife Sanctuary
This wildlife center cares for the welfare of animals that have been orphaned or injured and aims to operate as a release area for rehabilitated animals. Volunteers with this project help build enclosures, relocate and rehab wildlife and help with the daily operation of the sanctuary, including feeding animals, cleaning enclosures and tending sick or injured animals.
Location: east of Windhoek
Dates: starting 1st and 3rd Thursday of each month
Duration: 2 – 12 weeks
Age limit: at least 18
Cost: from $1,166
Desert Elephant Conservation Project
In the Damaraland area of Namibia a small population of desert-adapted elephants have come into conflict with the local human population and it is the aim of this volunteer project to manage the conflict and assist in its resolution. Volunteers spend the first week at a remote desert camp building walls, made from local stone and cement, around vitally important water sources for local homesteads. The next week is spent on patrol, following elephants on foot, sometimes for hours, under the desert sun.
Location: near Skeleton Coast National Park
Dates: 2 or 3 start dates each month, excepting December and January
Duration: 2 -12 weeks
Cost: $1,200 for 2 weeks up to $5,760 for 12 weeks
Cheetah Conservation Project
The Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) collects data on cheetah behavior and ecology and works with Namibia's farmers to change attitudes towards cheetahs. Volunteers are based at Eland's Joy, a 15,000-hectare working farm and participation in wildlife surveys, feeding and caring for captive cheetahs and data entry are the primary tasks. Volunteers may also assist with biomedical collections on wild cheetahs, if any are captured during your visit.
Location: northern Namibia
Dates: starting from May 10, June 7, June 28, July 19, August 16, September 13, October 11, November 1, November 29
Duration: 15 days
Cost: from $2,632
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Netherlands Antilles
St. Maarten Animal Welfare Foundation
St. Maarten Animal Welfare Foundation responds to animal emergencies and provides medical treatment and sterilizations for animals. Volunteers duties include: accompanying field service drivers; walking dogs at adoption center; and assisting veterinarians and trappers. Email sxmanimalwelfare@yahoo.com to arrange visit.
Location: None fixed - administration done from volunteers’ homes.
Dates: Year round – fixed field service shifts Tuesdays and Wednesdays
Duration: Any
Age range: 12 and up
Cost: None
Panama
Fundacion Spay/Panama
Fundacion Spay/Panama operates a high-volume low-cost spay/neuter clinic and a trap-neuter-release program. Volunteers would assist veterinarians and trappers.
Location: Bethania, Panama
Dates: Year round
Duration: 1 week
Age range: 18 and older
Cost: $400 which includes airport transportation, lodging, all meals including one dinner at a restaurant overlooking the Panama Canal, and some sightseeing. Items such as expired or soon to be expired medical and surgical supplies (antibiotics, analgesics, flea and tick medication, surgical drapes, etc.) are always greatly appreciated.
Leatherback Turtle Conservation Project
The Rainforest Concern operates this project that aims to ensure the long-term survival of internationally-protected endangered turtle species, such as the leatherback turtle. The project is located on the beautiful archipelago of Bocas del Toro, the home of the country's first national marine park. Most of the work will take place at night, when volunteers patrol the beaches for egg-laying turtles.
Location: Bocas del Toro
Dates: between March 25th and June 15th
Duration: 2 – 10 weeks
Cost: $1,690 for 2 weeks to $3,410 for 10 weeks
Peru
Rainforest Wildlife Reserve
This wildlife reserve is located on the edge of one of the Amazon's mighty tributaries, the Rio Madre de Dios. Mammals and birds abound. It is Peru's premier animal release center for wild animals that have become abandoned pets and have been caught in towns near the forest. Voluntary work opportunities with us in the Peruvian rainforest offer the chance to become involved in wildlife projects such as animal-release programs and turtle monitoring.
Location: reserve in Amazon rainforest
Dates: year round
Duration: 2 – 12 weeks
Fees: $2,266 for 2 weeks to $4,099 for 12 weeks
Romania
Bear Sanctuary
The World Society for the Protection of Animals has recently constructed a sanctuary that will enable captive bears to be re-homed in 10 hectares of forest. Where possible, young bears will be rehabilitated and returned to the wild. Once Romania's captive bear problem has been resolved, it will be used for rescuing captive bears from other European countries. Volunteers help with a wide range of tasks, including feeding the bears, monitoring their progress, helping at the “bear hospital,” maintaining fences and facilities and showing visitors around.
Location: near Brasov
Dates: January, April, July and September
Duration: minimum of 1 week up to 3 months
Cost: from $1,313 for 1 week (2nd & 3rd months free)
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South Africa
Monkey Rehabilitation Center
This project aims to help any injured or orphaned animal, not just monkeys. When ready, the animals are released back into their natural habitat. Another focus of the project is to improve animal conservation and government policy. Volunteers help by preparing food, feeding and caring for animals, checking animals for injuries and building new enclosures.
Location: Phalaborwa
Dates: year round
Duration: 1 – 8 weeks
Cost: from $1,399
Animal Care Project
Volunteers can choose to work in either a general domestic animal center or a seabird rehabilitation center near Cape Town. Volunteers assisting with domestic animals work mostly with stray dogs and cats at centers in Cape Town. Working with the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), you'll be involved with preparing food, cleaning out cages, exercising the animals, grooming and caring for neglected and abused animals. At the bird sanctuary, volunteers will assist in preparing food, feeding the penguins, cleaning out cages and rehabilitating injured or oiled birds.
Location: Cape Town
Dates: year round
Duration: minimum 2 weeks up to several months (volunteers for bird sanctuary should plan on minimum of 6 weeks
Cost: $3,495 for 1 month
Monkey Rehabilitation Center
This massive rehabilitation center presently houses more than 600 monkeys and other wildlife species, making it the biggest primate rehabilitation center in South Africa. It is also the biggest vervet monkey rehabilitation center in the world. Volunteers participate in caring for injured or sick animals, assisting with medical procedures, preparing meals, assisting with the building of new cages and enclosures and assisting with releases into the wild.
Location: South Africa
Dates: starting every Monday year round
Duration: 2 – 12 weeks
Cost: from $872 for 2 weeks
Wildlife Rehabilitation Center
The Moholoholo Rehabilitation Center plays a crucial role in conserving many endangered species of Africa. The work at Moholoholo involves rehabilitating injured and poisoned wildlife and endangered species monitoring. Animals are brought from all over Africa to Moholoholo – some are rehabilitated and re-released into the wild while those unable to be released are cared for at the center. Volunteers take on the responsibility of the care and protection of the sanctuary’s wildlife. Day to day responsibilities include cleaning and feeding animals.
Location: Drakensberg escarpment in Limpopo Province near Kruger National Park
Dates: year round
Duration: 2 – 12 weeks
Cost: $1,753 for 2 weeks up to $5,410 for 12 weeks
Wildlife Sanctuary
The sanctuary is home to many different wild and domestic animal species and about 150 different species of birds. Most of the animals were taken in because they had been badly injured, abused or orphaned, and some are unwanted pets. The sanctuary currently accommodates some wild cats, crocodiles, impala, kudu and other buck species, marmoset monkeys, emus and wallabies, and even some giraffe and zebra. Volunteer duties include food preparation, hand rearing of orphaned wildlife, cleaning enclosures and collecting data on wild animals within the reserve.
Location: Eastern Cape, near Port Elizabeth
Dates: year round
Duration: 2 – 12 weeks
Cost: $1,089 for 2 weeks up to $3,502 for 12 weeks
Companion Animal Rescue
TEARS provides food parcels, veterinary treatment and animal care education for those that could not otherwise afford it. Volunteers participate in various types of work with animals, including helping with feeding and facilities maintenance. There is also the opportunity to visit animals living in local communities and to help the resident veterinarian.
Location: Kommetjie, Cape Town
Dates: twice monthly starting dates
Duration: 2 – 12 weeks
Age limit: at least 17
Cost: $1,195 for 2 weeks, $200 for each additional week
Special skills: prior animal care experience not required
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Spain
Chimp Rescue and Rehabilitation Center
Weekend volunteers at this primate rescue and rehabilitation facility help with the daily care of rescued animals. This includes collecting fruits and vegetables from local markets, preparing and distributing food, cleaning the animals’ sleeping quarters and observing chimps and recording their behavior.
Location: near Girona
Dates: year round
Duration: 2 to 4 days
Cost: $316 to $632
Sri Lanka
Elephant Orphanage
The Elephant Orphanage project in Pinnawela has the greatest herd of elephants in captivity in the world. Volunteers working in the elephant orphanage mostly work as assistant to the "mahouts." Volunteers bathe the elephants in the river twice a day, clean out and maintain their enclosures in the morning, wash and feed the baby elephants and help in construction or maintenance work.
Location: Pinnawela
Dates: starting on 1st and 3rd Monday each month
Duration: less than 1 week up to 12 weeks
Cost: $299 for less than 1 week up to $1,777 for 12 weeks
Turtle Conservation Project
This project was virtually wiped out by the South Asian Tsunami and has been struggling to get back on its feet. It is a temporary home to 700 eggs at any one time and a permanent home to various tsunami-damaged turtles. As a volunteer, participants will feed and clean the turtles, clean their environments and simultaneously monitoring and releasing baby turtles from the hatchery. Volunteers will also monitor turtle egg-laying, soon followed by relocating the just-hatched eggs to a safe nesting area.
Location: Kosgoda
Dates: starting on 1st and 3rd Monday each month
Duration: less than 1 week up to 12 weeks
Cost: $299 for less than 1 week up to $1,777 for 12 weeks
Elephant Sanctuary
Set near the small town of Kegalle, among beautiful, lush green countryside, this project looks after injured or ageing elephants whose owners could no longer afford to care for them and operates a mobile veterinary clinic. The project offers volunteers a mixture of hands-on animal care and office-based research or administration tasks.
Location: Kegalle in the Kandy region
Dates: twice monthly starting dates
Duration: 2 – 12 weeks
Age limit: at least 18
Cost: $1,795 for 2 weeks, $200 for each additional week
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Thailand
Animal Sanctuary
This reserve includes a lake where there are seven gibbon islands, which allow the gibbons to live a life as close as possible to a life in the wild. Animals you can expect to work with at the center include a variety of macaques, two species of gibbon, several species of civets, loris, leopard cats, tigers, bears, crocodiles and exotic birds. The center tries to provide these animals with enclosures as close to nature as possible or, where possible, reintroduction to the wild. Volunteers prepare and distribute food and help clean and maintain enclosures.
Location: Kao Look Chang in Phetchaburi Province
Dates: year round
Duration: 2 -12 weeks
Age Limit: at least 18
Cost: $747 for 2 weeks up to $1,947 for 12 weeks
Langur Conservation Project
The purpose of the Langur Project is to help preserve the langur population in their natural environment. Educating both local people and visitors is a very important task, the aim being that local people will benefit from tourism and maintain their natural resources, while visitors can help create awareness about this unique species and help to minimize the negative effects of standard tourism. On a day-to-day basis, volunteers study the behavior of the dusky langurs in the forest and report findings to the project staff. Volunteers also feed the animals in some areas where needed.
Location: Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park in Prachuap Khiri Khan Province
Dates: year round
Duration: at least 1 week
Age limit: at least 18
Cost: $468 for 1 week
Gibbon Rescue Center
Gibbons are often kept as pets or as tourist attractions illegally in Thailand. Up to the age of five they are cute and cuddly, but at adulthood they can become aggressive and are often abandoned or killed. The center tries to rehabilitate gibbons back into the wild or look after them in a suitable environment if they can’t be released. The center houses over 70 gibbons all of whom came from an abused background. Volunteers help with feeding, cleaning, cage maintenance, site mapping, trail maintenance and data collection.
Location: outside Phuket
Dates: starting June 5, July 3, August 7, September 4, October 2, November 6, December 4
Duration: 4 – 12 weeks
Fees: $1,316 for 4 weeks up to $2,194 for 12 weeks
Wildlife Rescue Center
The wildlife rescue center's aim is to save wild animals and their habitat from destruction. The project focuses on rehabilitating captive or domesticated animals, and in some cases preparing them for a reintroduction to their natural habitats. The Wildlife Rescue Center currently houses over 200 rescued animals including gibbons, various species of macaque, lorises, civets, bears, a crocodile and a tiger. Volunteers buy food at the market, prepare food and feed animals, clean cages and help build and maintain housing for the animals.
Location: Tha Yang (also referred to as Ban Tha Yang) in southern Thailand
Dates: year round
Duration: 2 – 12 weeks
Age limit: at least 18
Cost: $876 for 2 weeks up to $2,304 for 12 weeks
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United States
Farm Sanctuary
Farm Sanctuary works to end cruelty to farm animals and promotes compassionate living through rescue, education and advocacy. Farm Sanctuary holds regularly scheduled work parties devoted to activities that help them operate their sanctuaries in New York and California. Farm chores and projects may include activities such as shelter maintenance and beautification (i.e., cleaning, raking, painting or gardening) or administrative activities like stuffing envelopes.
Location: Watkins Glen, New York or Orland, California
Dates: 2nd Saturday of every month, April through November
Duration: 1 day
Age limit: ages 12 through 17 must be accompanied by an adult
Cost: none
Animal Sanctuary
This 90-acre animal sanctuary provides care for nearly 150 exotic animals. Based in Florida, the sanctuary cares for exotic animals that have been removed from a situation of neglect or abuse, and who, if they could not be re-homed, would be destroyed. A place in the sanctuary for an animal is, therefore, a place for life, and help is needed in the feeding and cleaning of the animals, as well as to build habitats and maintain the existing ones.
Location: near Zolfo Springs, Florida
Dates: starting every Sunday year round
Duration: 4 – 12 weeks
Age limit: at least 21
Cost: $1,960 for 4 weeks up to $4,580 for 12 weeks
Whale Watching Project
The Whale Watching Spoken Here program places hundreds of volunteers at great whale watching sites along the Oregon coast during Watch Weeks so they can teach others while watching the whales too. Whale Watching Spoken Here volunteers comprise one of the largest whale watching networks in the world. Volunteers observe and document whale numbers and behavior and educate visitors about whales and whale watching.
Location: 26 sites along coast of the Pacific ocean, Oregon
Dates: last week in December, last week in March
Duration: 1 day up to 7-8 days during peak whale migration season
Cost: $20 donation
Special skills: must complete 2-day training session, held in one of three locations
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US Virgin Islands Animal Care Center of St John, Inc
The Animal Care Center of St John is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to alleviating the suffering of the animals of St John, to re-unite lost pets with their families, to place un-owned pets with an adoptive family, and to educate the community on responsible pet ownership and humane treatment of all animals. Opportunities for volunteers include walking shelter dogs twice a day and accompanying (flying with) animals who are up for stateside adoption. Contact ACC at 340.774.1625 or via email at stjacc@islands.vi.
Location: St. John, USVI
Dates: Year-round
Duration: Any
Age Range: 18-80
Cost: None (Volunteers arrange their flights and accommodation)
Vanuatu
Turtle Conservation Project
The Vanua-Tai (meaning ‘Of Land and Sea’) Natural Resource Monitors are a national network of community members that are working within their communities to institute bans on the harvest of turtles and their eggs in coastal villages all across Vanuatu. In addition to working with communities to conserve their turtles, Wan Smolbag Theatre (WSB) has started to work with communities to conduct surveys of turtles nesting beaches. Volunteer activities vary by season and include conducting nest surveys, tagging turtles and monitoring and assisting hatchlings.
Location: Moso Island
Dates: starting September 28, October 26, November 23, January 4, February 1, March 1
Duration: 4 – 12 weeks
Cost: $2,320 for 4 weeks to $4,160 for 12 weeks
Zimbabwe
Black Rhino and Elephant Conservation Project
Imire Safari Ranch has handled a total of 32 black rhino since the project began in 1987. It has returned 10 rhino back to the Matusadona National Park in Zimbabwe. Released rhino females have bred successfully in the Park. Volunteer duties include feeding, pen cleaning, spending time with the elephants to collect behavior data and elephant patrols and sweeps for snares.
Location: Imire Safari Ranch, west of Harare
Dates: year round
Duration: 3 – 6 weeks
Age limit: at least 17
Cost: $2,590 for 1 month up to $2,990 for 6 weeks
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