Purpose of Emergency Relief category:
We're here to help in the event of large-scale natural disasters in the United States and Canada. In case of an emergency, funds are available to support authorized designated responders providing relief during large-scale natural disasters. Funds are aimed toward support of rescue, relief, response, and recovery efforts of owned pets.
Grants can support:
- Sheltering supplies/infrastructure, reunification efforts, necessary medical, staffing, meals, and lodging for volunteers/staff working with owned pets in impacted areas.
- Purchases for necessary immediate sheltering needs for up to 30 days (gas/lodging, kennels, crates, carriers, food, waste management, bowls, leads/leashes)
- Medical expenses to provide required and/or necessary vaccinations and immediate medical care for impacted pets.
Eligible organizations include:
- Authorized designated responders as determined by the emergency Agency Having Jurisdiction, the organization designated as a responder by the Office of Emergency Management at the city, county, state, or federal level.
- Grants can be provided to animal welfare and human services organizations if the support is to provide shelter to keep people and pets together.
Request not eligible for consideration:
- Pet transport, whether prior to or after the disaster
- Emergency preparedness efforts or requests for infrastructure or vehicles
- Hoarding or animal cruelty seizures
- Incidents affecting personally owned property
- Self-deploying organizations (organizations not requested by the Agency Having Jurisdiction over the disaster response efforts)
- Organizations depopulating or pulling pets from shelters prior to disasters
- Individual pet parent requests to support food or medical care for individual pets
- Requests to support equine, livestock or wildlife
Additional application information:
- In the event of a qualifying large scale natural disaster, grant applications are eligible for consideration for up to 90 days.
- Organizations may only apply for one grant per disaster. Organizations may apply for immediate funding after impact based on estimated needs in which case, the grant may be more conservatively awarded.
- Alternatively, organizations may wait to submit an application with a more detailed and determined needs assessment.
- Transport, whether prior to disaster or after a disaster, is not eligible for funding consideration.
- View the sample Natural Disaster Emergency Relief Application
If your request serves pets impacted by a natural disaster and meets the qualifying criteria above but the application is not active, email emergencyrelief@petsmartcharities.org to inquire about Emergency Relief assistance.
COVID-19 Emergency Relief Support
PetSmart Charities and PetSmart Charities of Canada have cumulatively awarded more than $2 million in Emergency Relief grants to organizations helping the pets of people impacted by COVID-19 (hospitalized, facing food insecurity, and other challenges) and shelters who have experienced an increase of pet intake due to this crisis.
The Emergency Relief grant for COVID-19 support is now closed.
We understand that the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is potentially longstanding for many communities. Our 2020 programmatic grant categories will continue to provide funding opportunities for organizations to help pets and the people who love them. For more information, please visit petsmartcharities.org/pro/grants
