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 nonprofit organization or municipal agency with a physical facility housing animals available for adoption, with regular/set hours open to the public for adoptions
  • “Friends of” groups may apply for funding on behalf of their municipal agency partner
  • Foster-based rescue organizations are not eligible
• 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 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:

Individual grant amounts will range from $25,000 to a maximum of $100,000

Eligible funding options, outlined in more detail in the companion document, include (but are not limited to) facility repairs, sanitation and disease control, animal housing improvements, animal enrichment infrastructure, emergency preparedness, and shelter software. 

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.

Critical Shelter Infrastructure grant funding is limited to proposals supporting cats, dogs, and equines.

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

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 nonprofit organization or municipal agency with a physical facility housing animals available for adoption, with regular/set hours open to the public for adoptions
  • “Friends of” groups may apply for funding on behalf of their municipal agency partner
  • Foster-based rescue organizations are not eligible
• 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 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:

Individual grant amounts will range from $25,000 to a maximum of $100,000

Eligible funding options, outlined in more detail in the companion document, include (but are not limited to) Return to Owner (RTO) strategies, open adoptions support, adoption promotions, foster expansion, operational optimization, and staff and volunteer training.

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.

Strengthening Shelter Essentials grant funding is limited to proposals supporting cats, dogs, and equines.

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

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 nonprofit 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:

Individual grant amounts will range from $10,000 to a maximum of $100,000

Eligible funding options, outlined in more detail in the companion document, support increasing the annual number of spay/neuter surgeries performed year-over-year.

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.

Increasing Spay/Neuter Surgeries grant funding is limited to proposals supporting cats and dogs.

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

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 nonprofit 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:

Individual grant amounts will range from $100,000 to a maximum of $500,000

Eligible funding options, outlined in more detail in the companion document, include major capital projects to increase spay/neuter capacity, such as expansions, new clinic openings, and remodeling to increase the number of spay/neuter surgeries performed.

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.

Spay/Neuter Major Capital Projects grant funding is limited to proposals supporting cats and dogs.

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

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 nonprofit 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:

Individual grant amounts will range from $10,000 to a maximum of $100,000

Eligible funding options, outlined in more detail in the companion document, include special projects that increase spay/neuter capacity through creative, out-of-the-box ideas that do not fit within the “Increasing Spay/Neuter Surgeries” or “Spay/Neuter Major Capital Projects” categories—be specific!

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.

Spay/Neuter Special Projects grant funding is limited to proposals supporting cats and dogs.

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

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