2026 ASPCA Grants for Shelters and Spay/Neuter Clinics

Only one application per agency/organization will be considered. 

Applicants may choose only one of the five funding categories. Our interest is in meeting your most pressing needs in one of the offered categories; we do not have our own preference for funding one category over another. We will fund the most compelling proposals, regardless of category chosen.

Applicants for this category of funding must

• be a non-profit organization or municipal agency with a physical facility housing animals available for adoption, with regular/set hours open to the public for adoptions. Foster-based rescue organizations are not eligible.
  • “Friends of” groups may apply for funding on behalf of their municipal agency partner.
• be registered and report data to Shelter Animals Count (SAC), unless prohibited by law
  • By contributing to SAC, organizations help build a reliable national dataset. Contributors to SAC also receive a wealth of information on national trends that may affect their organization.
  • Register here if you are not already reporting data to SAC: https://data.shelteranimalscount.org/login
• Recipients of a Critical Shelter Infrastructure or a Strengthening Shelter Essentials Grant will be required to: 
  • opt in to an ASPCA 2026 shelter grants SAC coalition.
  • Submit 2025 and 2026 YTD intake and outcome data within 3 months of grant approval date
    • Find out more about SAC Coalitions here: https://www.shelteranimalscount.org/coalitions/

All applicants must meet ASPCA Grantee Organizational Standards:

• If a past ASPCA grant recipient, applicants must be current on all reporting requirements for such grant
• If a nonprofit organization, applicants must: 
  • be an incorporated or organized legal entity in good standing with the Secretary of State in the state where the organization is incorporated or organized
  • have a board of directors consisting of at least 4 members with a majority of independent members and with neither board chair nor treasurer receiving compensation from the organization; and
  • have a current/active charitable registration in the state of the Grantee’s primary location (for grants ≥$25,000).

Funding Restrictions and Parameters

The maximum grant amount shall not exceed $100,000 except for major capital projects for spay/neuter, which shall not exceed $500,000. 

Eligible funding options include (but are not limited to) the following categories and are outlined in more detail in the companion documents:

• Critical shelter infrastructure: Facility repairs, sanitation and disease control, animal housing improvements, animal enrichment infrastructure, emergency preparedness, shelter software, etc. These grants will range from $25,000 - $100,000.

Requests for new, permanent staff will be considered. Organizations applying for new, permanent staff will be required to provide a detailed plan for sustainability beyond the grant term when submitting their application.

Funding opportunities are limited to proposals supporting the following animals:

• Critical Shelter Infrastructure: cats, dogs, and equines 

Applicants selected for funding will be required to submit supplemental baseline data, depending on the proposal. Supplemental data may include self-assessments, shelter data metrics outside of Shelter Animals Count monthly aggregate data, etc., depending on the grant proposal.

Grantees will be required to submit an interim and final report that includes follow-up data similar to the data requested in the application and supplemental baseline data.

How to Apply

View the complete details in the companion PDF. Be sure to prepare all information required to complete your application in one session. Process cannot be saved and applications cannot be edited once submitted.

LAUNCH APPLICATION

Only one application per agency/organization will be considered. 

Applicants may choose only one of the five funding categories. Our interest is in meeting your most pressing needs in one of the offered categories; we do not have our own preference for funding one category over another. We will fund the most compelling proposals, regardless of category chosen.

Applicants for this category of funding must

• be a non-profit organization or municipal agency with a physical facility housing animals available for adoption, with regular/set hours open to the public for adoptions. Foster-based rescue organizations are not eligible.
  • “Friends of” groups may apply for funding on behalf of their municipal agency partner.
• be registered and report data to Shelter Animals Count (SAC), unless prohibited by law
  • By contributing to SAC, organizations help build a reliable national dataset. Contributors to SAC also receive a wealth of information on national trends that may affect their organization.
  • Register here if you are not already reporting data to SAC: https://data.shelteranimalscount.org/login
• Recipients of a Critical Shelter Infrastructure or a Strengthening Shelter Essentials Grant will be required to: 
  • opt in to an ASPCA 2026 shelter grants SAC coalition.
  • Submit 2025 and 2026 YTD intake and outcome data within 3 months of grant approval date
    • Find out more about SAC Coalitions here: https://www.shelteranimalscount.org/coalitions/

All applicants must meet ASPCA Grantee Organizational Standards:

• If a past ASPCA grant recipient, applicants must be current on all reporting requirements for such grant
• If a nonprofit organization, applicants must: 
  • be an incorporated or organized legal entity in good standing with the Secretary of State in the state where the organization is incorporated or organized
  • have a board of directors consisting of at least 4 members with a majority of independent members and with neither board chair nor treasurer receiving compensation from the organization; and
  • have a current/active charitable registration in the state of the Grantee’s primary location (for grants ≥$25,000).

Funding Restrictions and Parameters

The maximum grant amount shall not exceed $100,000 except for major capital projects for spay/neuter, which shall not exceed $500,000. 

Eligible funding options include (but are not limited to) the following categories and are outlined in more detail in the companion documents:

• Strengthening shelter essentials: Return to Owner (RTO) strategies, open adoptions support, adoption promotions, foster expansion, operational optimization, staff and volunteer training, etc. These grants will range from $25,000 - $100,000.

Requests for new, permanent staff will be considered. Organizations applying for new, permanent staff will be required to provide a detailed plan for sustainability beyond the grant term when submitting their application.

Funding opportunities are limited to proposals supporting the following animals:

• Strengthening Shelter Essentials: cats, dogs, and equines 

Applicants selected for funding will be required to submit supplemental baseline data, depending on the proposal. Supplemental data may include self-assessments, shelter data metrics outside of Shelter Animals Count monthly aggregate data, etc., depending on the grant proposal.

Grantees will be required to submit an interim and final report that includes follow-up data similar to the data requested in the application and supplemental baseline data.

How to Apply

View the complete details in the companion PDF. Be sure to prepare all information required to complete your application in one session. Process cannot be saved and applications cannot be edited once submitted.

LAUNCH APPLICATION

Only one application per agency/organization will be considered. 

Applicants may choose only one of the five funding categories. Our interest is in meeting your most pressing needs in one of the offered categories; we do not have our own preference for funding one category over another. We will fund the most compelling proposals, regardless of category chosen.

Applicants for this category of funding must:

• be a non-profit organization, governmental entity, tribal authority, or for-profit veterinary clinic and offer or facilitate affordable spay-neuter surgeries for owned dogs and cats, shelter dogs and cats, and/or community cats
• Shelter and rescue applicants must be registered with Shelter Animals Count (SAC), unless prohibited by law.

By contributing to SAC, organizations help build a reliable national dataset. Contributors to SAC also receive a wealth of information on national trends that may affect their organization.

• Register here if you are not already reporting data to SAC: https://data.shelteranimalscount.org/login

All applicants must meet ASPCA Grantee Organizational Standards:

• If a past ASPCA grant recipient, applicants must be current on all reporting requirements for such grant
• If a nonprofit organization, applicants must: 
  • be an incorporated or organized legal entity in good standing with the Secretary of State in the state where the organization is incorporated or organized
  • have a board of directors consisting of at least 4 members with a majority of independent members and with neither board chair nor treasurer receiving compensation from the organization; and
  • have a current/active charitable registration in the state of the Grantee’s primary location (for grants ≥$25,000).

Funding Restrictions and Parameters

The maximum grant amount shall not exceed $100,000 except for major capital projects for spay/neuter, which shall not exceed $500,000. 

Eligible funding options include (but are not limited to) the following categories and are outlined in more detail in the companion documents:

• Increasing spay/neuter surgeries: Increasing the annual number of spay/neuter surgeries performed year-over-year. These grants will range from $10,000 - $100,000.

Requests for new, permanent staff will be considered. Organizations applying for new, permanent staff will be required to provide a detailed plan for sustainability beyond the grant term when submitting their application.

Funding opportunities are limited to proposals supporting the following animals:

• Increasing Spay/Neuter Surgeries: cats and dogs only 

Applicants selected for funding will be required to submit supplemental baseline data, depending on the proposal. Supplemental data may include self-assessments, shelter data metrics outside of Shelter Animals Count monthly aggregate data, etc., depending on the grant proposal.

Grantees will be required to submit an interim and final report that includes follow-up data similar to the data requested in the application and supplemental baseline data.

How to Apply

View the complete details in the companion PDF. Be sure to prepare all information required to complete your application in one session. Process cannot be saved and applications cannot be edited once submitted.

LAUNCH APPLICATION

Only one application per agency/organization will be considered. 

Applicants may choose only one of the five funding categories. Our interest is in meeting your most pressing needs in one of the offered categories; we do not have our own preference for funding one category over another. We will fund the most compelling proposals, regardless of category chosen.

Applicants for this category of funding must:

• be a non-profit organization, governmental entity, tribal authority, or for-profit veterinary clinic and offer or facilitate affordable spay-neuter surgeries for owned dogs and cats, shelter dogs and cats, and/or community cats
• Shelter and rescue applicants must be registered with Shelter Animals Count (SAC), unless prohibited by law.

By contributing to SAC, organizations help build a reliable national dataset. Contributors to SAC also receive a wealth of information on national trends that may affect their organization.

• Register here if you are not already reporting data to SAC: https://data.shelteranimalscount.org/login

All applicants must meet ASPCA Grantee Organizational Standards:

• If a past ASPCA grant recipient, applicants must be current on all reporting requirements for such grant
• If a nonprofit organization, applicants must: 
  • be an incorporated or organized legal entity in good standing with the Secretary of State in the state where the organization is incorporated or organized
  • have a board of directors consisting of at least 4 members with a majority of independent members and with neither board chair nor treasurer receiving compensation from the organization; and
  • have a current/active charitable registration in the state of the Grantee’s primary location (for grants ≥$25,000).

Funding Restrictions and Parameters

The maximum grant amount shall not exceed $100,000 except for major capital projects for spay/neuter, which shall not exceed $500,000. 

Eligible funding options include (but are not limited to) the following categories and are outlined in more detail in the companion documents:

• Major capital projects to increase spay/neuter: Expansions, new clinic openings, and remodeling to increase the number of spay/neuter surgeries performed. These grants will range from $100,000 - $500,000.

Requests for new, permanent staff will be considered. Organizations applying for new, permanent staff will be required to provide a detailed plan for sustainability beyond the grant term when submitting their application.

Funding opportunities are limited to proposals supporting the following animals:

• Major Capital Projects (spay/neuter): cats and dogs only 

Applicants selected for funding will be required to submit supplemental baseline data, depending on the proposal. Supplemental data may include self-assessments, shelter data metrics outside of Shelter Animals Count monthly aggregate data, etc., depending on the grant proposal.

Grantees will be required to submit an interim and final report that includes follow-up data similar to the data requested in the application and supplemental baseline data.

How to Apply

View the complete details in the companion PDF. Be sure to prepare all information required to complete your application in one session. Process cannot be saved and applications cannot be edited once submitted.

LAUNCH APPLICATION

Only one application per agency/organization will be considered. 

Applicants may choose only one of the five funding categories. Our interest is in meeting your most pressing needs in one of the offered categories; we do not have our own preference for funding one category over another. We will fund the most compelling proposals, regardless of category chosen.

Applicants for this category of funding must:

• be a non-profit organization, governmental entity, tribal authority, or for-profit veterinary clinic and offer or facilitate affordable spay-neuter surgeries for owned dogs and cats, shelter dogs and cats, and/or community cats
• Shelter and rescue applicants must be registered with Shelter Animals Count (SAC), unless prohibited by law.

By contributing to SAC, organizations help build a reliable national dataset. Contributors to SAC also receive a wealth of information on national trends that may affect their organization.

• Register here if you are not already reporting data to SAC: https://data.shelteranimalscount.org/login

All applicants must meet ASPCA Grantee Organizational Standards:

• If a past ASPCA grant recipient, applicants must be current on all reporting requirements for such grant
• If a nonprofit organization, applicants must: 
  • be an incorporated or organized legal entity in good standing with the Secretary of State in the state where the organization is incorporated or organized
  • have a board of directors consisting of at least 4 members with a majority of independent members and with neither board chair nor treasurer receiving compensation from the organization; and
  • have a current/active charitable registration in the state of the Grantee’s primary location (for grants ≥$25,000).

Funding Restrictions and Parameters

The maximum grant amount shall not exceed $100,000 except for major capital projects for spay/neuter, which shall not exceed $500,000. 

Eligible funding options include (but are not limited to) the following categories and are outlined in more detail in the companion documents:

• Special projects that increase spay/neuter capacity: Creative, out-of-the-box ideas that don’t fit into the “Increasing Spay/Neuter Surgeries” or “Major Capital Projects” categories—be specific! These grants will range from $10,000 - $100,000.

Requests for new, permanent staff will be considered. Organizations applying for new, permanent staff will be required to provide a detailed plan for sustainability beyond the grant term when submitting their application.

Funding opportunities are limited to proposals supporting the following animals:

• Special Projects (spay/neuter): cats and dogs only

Applicants selected for funding will be required to submit supplemental baseline data, depending on the proposal. Supplemental data may include self-assessments, shelter data metrics outside of Shelter Animals Count monthly aggregate data, etc., depending on the grant proposal.

Grantees will be required to submit an interim and final report that includes follow-up data similar to the data requested in the application and supplemental baseline data.

How to Apply

View the complete details in the companion PDF. Be sure to prepare all information required to complete your application in one session. Process cannot be saved and applications cannot be edited once submitted.

LAUNCH APPLICATION