Volunteers are the foundation of Toronto Cat Rescue and the reason we can help so many abandoned and homeless cats.

We offer a wide range of volunteer opportunities to engage and inspire you.

 

Foster Home

Become a foster parent to cats of all ages! Please scroll down for more information on this position.

Transport Coordinator

Transport coordinators play a key role in fulfilling transportation needs for shelters, TCR facilities, foster homes, clinics and retail adoption centres.

Store Volunteer

Volunteer at one of our store partners around the GTA. This weekly commitment is the perfect way to give back and cuddle cats!

Vet Clinic Appointment Booker

Support multiple TCR teams to schedule vet appointments and help organize for the foster cat to arrive at the vet safely.

Volunteer Centre Representative

Be the face of TCR to our donors and volunteers, providing great customer service at our Etobicoke Volunteer Centre.

Foster Coordinator

Support foster homes with the medical and behavioural needs of foster cats, and help prepare them for adoption into a forever home.

Drivers

Drivers are an essential part of the TCR family. We rely on drivers to pick up cats from Toronto Animal Services shelters, take cats to and from clinics, deliver materials, distribute food and medical supplies, and so much more.

If you are looking to Volunteer in the Kitchener-Waterloo area, please refer to the “KW Chapter” tab.

Healthcare Case Advisor

Join a high-functioning, multi-faceted team that triages health issues for cats and kittens within TCR’s foster program.

Store Coordinator

Become a store coordinator and help cats and kittens find their forever home. Currently needed at these locations:

  • Leaside PetSmart at 25 Industrial St, Toronto

  • Kennedy Commons PetSmart at 12 William Kitchen Rd, Toronto

 

Foster Homes

Toronto Cat Rescue does not run a shelter where the public can come and meet the cats available for adoption. Instead, we have an incredible network of foster homes that shower our kitties with all the love and care they need while they await adoption. It's a great way to ensure every cat is given the attention they deserve, and it also makes our foster homes the cornerstone of everything we do. We are grateful to every one of our volunteers and donors, but we'd be helpless to save these animals without our foster homes.

Please read the important questions below before submitting your application.

We are regularly in need of new foster homes to take in abandoned and homeless cats. If you'd like to welcome a foster cat into your home, ask yourself these important questions first:

Will you be able to spend quality time with the animals? 

On average, it is best to spend at least two hours a day with your foster animals. Socialization is just as crucial to their well-being as food and medical care.

Can you commit to bringing them to veterinary appointments? 

We ask that you provide your own transportation to these appointments wherever possible. You will also be required to possess a cat carrier before receiving your first foster cat.

Are you comfortable fostering a cat with varying degrees of health or behavioural concerns? 

We primarily rescue cats whose chance of adoption or low because they are ill, injured, scared or shy. The cats we rescue are the ones at greatest risk for euthanasia.

Are you able to separate our animals from your own?

Foster animals should remain isolated from your resident pets to prevent the potential transmission of disease. Having a sanctuary room for your new foster cat is critical in the first weeks they are in your home.

Are you prepared to provide supplies for you foster cat?

We do not have the resources to provide food or litter for all of the cats in our care and ask that foster homes be prepared to provide these things while the cat is with you. You will also need food and water bowls, a litter box, and a carrier for your foster cat.

Can you commit to spending the entire foster period with the animal? 

Your foster period may range from two weeks to several months.

Are you comfortable explaining to friends that they must go through the regular adoption process at TCR if they wish to adopt the animal?

All potential adopters must speak with one of our adoption counsellors before they are permitted to take a cat home.

Will you be able to relinquish the animal(s) at the end of the foster period? 

It can be challenging to let go once you have become emotionally attached. Most foster animals are moved to our retail adoption locations once they are ready for adoption. Of course, foster parents are permitted to submit an adoption application for their foster cat.

Are you emotionally prepared to handle the death of one of your foster animals?

This can be very difficult, but sadly it can happen, especially with kittens.

We always need Foster Homes for cats or kittens!

If you are interested in literally saving and making lives better, become a TCR foster parent.