Help starting an animal sanctuary and nonprofit organization
I think this may have gotten posted twice and I apologize
I would like to start an animal sanctuary and of course it would be a nonprofit organization, but I have no clue how to start it and who I would talk to about it.
Obviously I am trying to raise money to purchase land and a facility so I don't have to do this out of my own home.
I'm just really lost and have no idea what I'm doing. If anyone has any advice or can maybe point me in the direction of someone that I could talk to, awesome.
I have a gofundme, a social media page and a website for it, because I have taken in a stray chicken and helped a personal pet that the prognosis wasn't great.
The end goal will be to have a facility that will take in and devote one on one time to animals that are a little harder to place and farm animals. I also wish to have a place for senior animals, there are just so many senior animals in shelters and they don't deserve to spend their golden years in a shelter.
I also would love to be able to have a place for retired military dogs as well
lunarainbowsanctuary No offense. You obviously have a good heart and love animals.
Don’t fool yourself into thinking ‘non-profits’ don’t exist to profit. They all get paid, some of the more well known ones have ceo and high ranking employees making hundreds of thousands a year.
That being said- getting off the ground takes more than wanting to help the animals and-
“I have no clue how to start it”.
“ Obviously I am trying to raise money to purchase land and a facility so I don't have to do this out of my own home.”
“I'm just really lost and have no idea what I'm doing”
“I have a gofundme”
A ‘non-profit’ business is still a business. It’s not magic, easy or free. Most in fact are somewhat of a scam.
GoFundMe is def a scam as they take a hefty chunk of monies donated when you could collect on your own for free. Like many other businesses - playing off heart strings and ignorance is how they profit.
Lastly- there will ALWAYS be many more animals than those capable or wanting to take care of them. You may save a few, but it will be a labor of love, for little impact or income.
Josh There is a very old thread on the exact same subject:
http://www.hackettstownlife.com/forum/259215
Josh is basically correct when he talks about the difficulties. Starting and running a non-profit takes a CPA and a should have a lawyer review as well. If you're new to a business to begin with you should really get someone else to start and oversee the corporate pat of it. Anything that is going to own a facility is going to take a lot of work and planning. What's your 3 yr, 5 yr, 10 yr plans to get there? You have to have your charter written the write way (legal review is usually necessary), register with the state, and then submit to the IRS. It can take a year and more for them to make a decision, if they even ever do at all. You have to have that done before you take in your first $ in donations. Otherwise there are bad tax consequences for you personally.
Afterwards you will have a lot of filings and need certified financials. It takes a lot of work that's above and beyond the charity itself. The other thread has the story of something I was involved with that never got off the ground. I mentioned the same when there was a time another pet oriented non-profit was looking to start.
One of the resources I can suggest is boardsource.org - they helped me understand all of the issues. But for the most part you begin to wonder if it's really worth all of that unless you having something that's going to be fairly big and around for far longer than you're alive.
I'm not sure I call GoFundMe exactly a scam, but certainly agree it puts a huge burden of $ on something that needs every bit it can get. I'd never go down that route for a non-profit. You need to be better at fund raising if it expects to survive.
Good luck with it all.
GC Try the internet and, most certainly, try the library.
I agree, given your experience, this sounds like a bridge too far, and you might need auxiliary talents -----> but others have done it before, and perhaps they have shared their experience and learnings.
If not, find a shelter like the one you want to start, and go there. Learn.
strangerdanger If it is your passion you will not give up and you will find a way. I have no advice in starting a non-profit but there are regulatory requirements but all can be done if you have the persistent passion. Best of luck and keep us posted to your milestones.
iJay Help Barnyard Sanctuary instead. They are saving all sorts of farm animals and need more workers and volunteers.
4of4First- "they all get paid" is incorrect - at least at the two wildlife sanctuaries where I've volunteered. No one gets paid. The people in charge have other jobs or they are retired. The staff are all volunteers. There are no government grants. So fundraising to buy feed for the animals, decent caging and a million other things is overwhelming. You will need a board of hard workers to help with all the things named above.
If you are really serious, make an appointment with people who started local sanctuaries and get real information. It is exceptionally difficult, frustrating, expensive, and exhausting.
4catmom You could also contact Goats of Anarchy - https://goatsofanarchy.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/goatsofanarchy/?hl=en
Cinderelli If you haven't worked with numerous animals before, you may want to volunteer somewhere first so that you could gain experience working with a range of animals as well as connect with other people equally passionate about animal rescue. I think 4of4 and 4catmom both gave excellent advice. Barnyard Sanctuary and the Avian Center in Wantage are two somewhat local sanctuaries. You might want to make an appointment and talk to the folks there or consider volunteering.
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