Spaying Capital Region Unowned Feral Felines (SCRUFF)

VOLUNTEER

How you can help

Get involved!! Your volunteer support helps SCRUFF make a greater difference for community cats. Each SCRUFF volunteer helps us widen our reach to reduce the overpopulation of cats within the Capital Region. Please call us at (518) 526-3372 to learn more about volunteer opportunities. We need you! Here are some ways you can help make a difference!

  • Veterinarians and Veterinary Technicians: Participate at a spay day clinic at the Animal Protective Foundation (APF) in Scotia. One Sunday per month we hold a spay day to perform a number of spay/neuter surgeries and we are constantly seeking vets and vet techs to help. Only four hours of time will reap tremendous rewards for community cats.
    • NOTE: Continuing Education (CE) credits are also available to vets! Here is the Fact Sheet and corresponding volunteer Attestation that supports CE credits. It’s a WIN WIN for you and the cats!
  • Non-clinical support staff: Help the support functions at a monthly spay day clinic at the APF.  These may include help with the check-in process, support of the cats as they are anesthetized and put through the process, cleaning instruments, documenting rabies certificates, monitoring the cats during recovery, cleaning up from the day, and discharging the cats.
  • Grant writing: By applying for grants, we would secure additional funding from organizations based on our services.  This requires detailed grant application submissions.  Grant funds would be instrumental in helping increase our finances to continue our work.
  • Become a community cat trapper:  Feral cat colonies exist all over the Capital District and we are always interested in gaining additional volunteer trappers.  Come learn trapping tactics to help get feral colonies under control.
  • Help answer calls to our phone line: We need volunteers who can help return calls to our phone line and provide guidance to callers. It can be done from the convenience of your home!
  • Support fundraising efforts:  Periodically SCRUFF sponsors or participates in fundraising events to raise funds in order to continue to provide low cost spay/neuter services.
  • Photography:  Help us improve our website and tell our story better.  Help convey the story of community cats more effectively.
  • Staff Informational Booths:  Often there are animal awareness and campaigns throughout the Capital District.  SCRUFF may participate at these, and volunteers would be needed to staff an information booth to spread the word on how to reduce the feral cat population.
  • Build feral shelters (or feeding stations):  We regularly receive calls for shelters for community cats and local options are very limited.  If you enjoy building things, are handy with tools, and have basic carpentry skills, we could definitely use your experience.  There is always a need for shelters, especially here in the northeast where weather conditions are unpredictable.  Building plans can be provided, or your own creativity is welcome, too.
  • Help lease traps to community cat caretakers:  We need volunteers to meet with caretakers who call our phone line and seek spay/neuter services, but do not own a humane trap and to demonstrate how to set the trap.  We arrange a mutually good time to lease traps from the Just Cats Veterinary Clinic location in Guilderland.
  • Become a community cat spokesperson: Educate friends and neighbors about the benefits of TNVR – an effective, humane and long-term solution to controlling feral cat population growth.
Medical prodecure
Cat undergoing exam
Scruff Troy Farmers Market

Contact Us

Do you have questions? Are you interested in volunteering with SCRUFF? Do you want to know more? Please email us at contact@scruffcats.org and we will reach out to you!