Ways to Show Your Love for Animals this Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day is a time to celebrate love—not just to our friends, family, and partners, but also to the animals who bring joy and balance to our lives. While roses and chocolates aren’t ideal gifts for our furry or feathered friends, there are plenty of things to do for Valentine’s Day that directly benefit abandoned, orphaned, and injured animals.
Whether you want to help shelter pets or support wildlife, here are thoughtful actions you can take to make a difference:
Ways to Give Shelter Animals Some Love
For shelter animals, love comes in the form of warm beds, playful afternoons, and forever homes. This Valentine’s Day, consider supporting your local animal shelter in one or more of the following ways:
Volunteer Your Time
Shelters are always in need of caring volunteers to walk dogs, play with cats, clean kennels, or assist with adoption events. Even a few hours a week can brighten the lives of shelter animals awaiting adoption. Contact your local shelter to find out how you can help.
Adopt a Pet
If you’ve been thinking about adding a four-legged friend to your family, Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to visit a shelter. Adopting a pet gives an animal in need a second chance at life and fills your home with unconditional love. If you’re not ready to adopt, consider fostering an animal instead!
Participate in a “Doggy Day Out” Program
Look into whether a shelter near you offers a “doggy day out” or “dog on command” program. These programs allow you to take a shelter dog along for a fun outing, providing them with much-needed exercise, companionship, and the chance to explore exciting new environments. This experience can be especially rewarding for young, large, or high-energy dogs who thrive on extra activity and space.
Donate Useful Items
Many shelters rely on in-kind or wish list donations to care for their animals. This Valentine’s Day, consider donating any of the following:
• Toys for mental stimulation (snuffle mats or puzzle feeders)
• Bedding and blankets to keep animals cozy
• Food, leashes, and collars
• Items from the shelter’s specific wish list, often found on their website or Amazon
Each of these contributions helps create a nurturing environment for shelter animals while they wait for their forever homes.
Ways to Show Wildlife Some Love
Wildlife plays a vital role in maintaining the balance of our ecosystems, but the increasing impacts of habitat loss, climate change, and human interference make their survival harder.
One of the best Valentine’s Day ideas is supporting wildlife in need. In addition to adopting an eco-conscious lifestyle, consider supporting a wildlife rehabilitation center. Here’s how you can help wild animals:
Volunteer at a Wildlife Rehabilitation Center
Offer your time to help with animal care, habitat maintenance, event planning, educational outreach, or even administrative tasks. There are many ways to align with your abilities and interests.
Donate Greenery and Enrichment Items
If you recently took down your Christmas tree or pruned your greenery, consider donating it to a wildlife center near you. Trimmed branches, logs, and even old Christmas trees can be repurposed as hiding places and other forms of habitat enrichment for animals while they’re recovering in captivity. Wildlife centers often accept other natural materials to create engaging and comforting environments for their animals.
Donate Wish List Items
Many wildlife centers maintain online wish lists of needed supplies, including:
• Food, such as fruits, nuts, or specific feed for wildlife
• Medical supplies, like bandages and disinfectants
• Tools for habitat enrichment, including certain types of toys and building materials that can be used to construct shelters, nesting boxes, climbing apparatuses, and perches.
Check with your local center to see what they need most!
Create a Wildlife- and Pollinator-Friendly Backyard
Creating a wildlife- and pollinator-friendly backyard is a simple yet impactful way to support local ecosystems and biodiversity. Pollinators like bees, butterflies, and birds are essential for healthy ecosystems and food production, but they face threats from habitat loss and climate change. By transforming your outdoor space into a haven for wildlife, you contribute to their survival while also enjoying a vibrant and dynamic yard.
Simple measures include planting native flowers that bloom throughout the growing season (providing continuous food sources for insects), avoiding pesticides, and creating a habitat with features like logs, rocks, or water sources. You can turn even a small yard into a thriving sanctuary, benefiting both wildlife and your connection to nature.
This Valentine’s Day, showing love to animals in need doesn’t require grand gestures—it’s about thoughtful actions that make a difference. Every effort helps create a better world for all living creatures. So, why not let love for animals be your Valentine’s gift this year? After all, there’s no greater way to celebrate love than by helping those who need it most.
Show Animals Love this Valentine’s Day with PAWS
PAWS is people helping cats, dogs, and wildlife go home and thrive — whether home is the family room or the forest. We achieve this by rehabilitating injured and orphaned wildlife, sheltering and adopting out homeless cats and dogs, and educating the community to inspire compassionate action.
This Valentine’s Day, you can make a difference with a gift that’s both heartfelt and lifesaving. In just a few clicks, send an adorable e-card to your loved one while giving an orphaned, abandoned, or injured animal a second chance at life. It’s a simple, eco-friendly way to show you care—sure to bring joy to both humans and animals alike!
Need help with a wild animal? PAWS Wildlife Rehabilitation Center operates an emergency hospital and specialized recovery facilities designed to rehabilitate sick, injured, and orphaned wildlife, helping them recover and return to the wild. Our wildlife rehabilitation center has moved to 13508 State Route 9 SE in Snohomish, Washington. If you need assistance with a wild animal, use our online self-service form or call 425-412-4040.
Please consider making a donation or volunteering with us today!