Donate to dogs in Los Angeles and help bring love, safety, and hope to homeless and shelter pets. Your support for VIDA rescues and cares for dogs left behind by families in crisis, giving each one a second chance to heal, belong, and find a forever home.
1. Why VIDA Needs Your Support
In 2025, Los Angeles and the Southern California area have become an epicenter for an unprecedented wave of migrant deportations. These mass disappearances have created a new and never-before-seen category of family impact: the pets left behind when their families are detained.
In a city already overwhelmed by unhoused residents and animals, a new wave of pets needing assistance has further taxed a shelter system already operating at three times capacity. The effect of these arrivals has been crippling — stretching shelter budgets, staff, and volunteers to the limit, while making the animals already in the system even more vulnerable.
The pets of deportees represent a heartbreaking truth: wanted pets, from loving immigrant families, have now joined the ranks of equally deserving animals trapped in the shelter system.
2. The Real Impact of Your Donation
Donations to VIDA perform double duty: they go directly to VIDA’s pets and families in need, and they also subsidize the care of pets being sponsored by other Los Angeles organizations whose missions have been disrupted by the deportation crisis.
Many of the pets VIDA helps are breeds already overrepresented in shelters and at higher risk of euthanasia. By placing them into a specialized category — “deportation dogs” or “deportation pets” — VIDA increases their visibility and gives them a better chance at survival, while also easing pressure on shelter systems.
Every donation helps not only immigrant families and their pets, but also strengthens the greater Los Angeles rescue ecosystem as a whole.
3. How to Get Involved
VIDA encourages everyone to be part of the solution. Whether you volunteer your time, foster a deportation-affected pet, or help spread awareness, your involvement makes a real difference.
From transport support to social outreach, every action you take helps stabilize the lives of pets and families in crisis across Los Angeles.
4. How to Donate to VIDA
VIDA accepts online, by-check, in-kind, and monthly gifts.
Our current in-kind donation wish list:
- Printing: Bilingual (Spanish and English) flyers, bumper stickers with VIDA’s logo and contact info.
- Apparel: VIDA t-shirts to increase community visibility.
- Vinyl wrap logo for automobile: For VIDA’s gifted transport SUV.
- Dog tags: Numbered tags for VIDA foster dogs.
- Laptop or iPad: For fieldwork, social media, and animal recordkeeping.
5. Donor Transparency and Accountability
VIDA maintains a strict transparency policy. Every dollar donated is tracked and applied directly to the care, treatment, or transport of pets impacted by deportations.
Regular updates are available through VIDA’s email newsletter and social media, so donors can see the tangible impact their support makes.
6. VIDA’s Community Outreach Program
VIDA collaborates with churches, community centers, and neighborhood groups to identify families at risk of deportation and provide early intervention for their pets. Outreach includes bilingual education, microchipping, and emergency boarding options.
7. Education and Awareness
VIDA is dedicated to educating the public about the intersection of immigration and animal welfare. Our campaigns aim to highlight the stories of affected families and promote compassion for all beings displaced by systemic hardship.
8. Donate Supplies: Food, Bedding, Toys
VIDA has a constant need for pet supplies of all kinds, including:
- Food: Kibble, canned, refrigerated, or frozen food; specialized diets (Hills, Royal Canin); and fresh food (meat, chicken, grains, vegetables, fruit).
- Treats: Training treats and calming aids.
- Grooming: Shampoos, brushes, clippers, nail trimmers, flea/tick prevention.
- Bedding: New or gently used pet beds, blankets, towels, sheets.
- Clothing: Pet sweaters, thunder shirts, “Adopt Me” scarves.
- Collars and leashes: All sizes and styles.
- Toys: Squeaky toys, ropes, tennis balls, Kongs, and more.
For in-kind giving and drop-off details, please contact VIDA directly.
9. Emergency Response and Field Operations
VIDA’s field teams respond rapidly to deportation-related emergencies where pets are left behind. We work with law enforcement, immigration attorneys, and social workers to safely recover, transport, and care for displaced animals.
Donations help equip our teams with transport crates, leashes, microchip scanners, food, and medical kits — ensuring every rescue is conducted safely and compassionately.
10. Foster Network Support
VIDA’s foster families provide the critical bridge between crisis and permanent home. We train, equip, and emotionally support foster volunteers to ensure both pets and caretakers feel secure and connected.
Donations to VIDA’s foster program help cover food, veterinary care, and supplies — making it easier for families to open their homes to animals in need.
11. How VIDA Collaborates With Partner Charities
VIDA was founded as an emergency response to the plight of companion animals left behind during mass deportations in Los Angeles and Southern California. While our 501(c)(3) nonprofit status is developing, 100% of donations go directly to assist affected animals and families.
VIDA partners with existing legal aid and animal assistance organizations to extend resources where they’re most needed. Any funds VIDA cannot use directly are redirected to partner shelters caring for similar “deportation pets.”
VIDA proudly supports:
Ways to Donate | LA Animal Services
Donations and Fundraising – LA County Animal Care & Control
When burdens are eased in one area, resources can be redirected to the next urgent need. Every donation helps Los Angeles animals facing homelessness.
12. How Donations Support Legal and Medical Aid
The VIDA Legal Assistance Fund works with our veterinary network to provide the medical and legal documentation necessary for pets to travel or reunite with families who choose to self-deport.
These donations help families stay together — preventing beloved pets from entering overcrowded shelters and reducing strain on Los Angeles taxpayers and animal care systems.
13. VIDA’s Long-Term Goals
VIDA’s vision is to create a sustainable network of legal, foster, and community care solutions for pets affected by deportation. Future goals include establishing a dedicated facility for intake and care, expanding our mobile clinic program, and building long-term partnerships across Southern California.
14. Volunteer Opportunities
Join the VIDA team as a volunteer and be part of a compassionate movement. From event coordination and transportation to administrative support and field assistance, every volunteer plays a vital role in saving lives.
15. Make Your Donation Today
Your support can make a life-changing difference.
To donate or learn more, contact us at:
info@vidaallianceinitiative.org