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Giving someone a gift that you know they’ll love is an amazing feeling, but finding that gift can be a bit stressful. If you still haven’t found that perfect gift and are in need of something last minute, we’ve got you covered.

Sponsoring an animal at an animal sanctuary in someone’s honor is an amazing gift to give. In doing so, you’ll help a sanctuary save lives and provide much-need veterinary care, food, shelter, and other necessities for the animals that they have rescued. In addition to giving the gift of saving a life, your gift recipient will receive some combination of updates, photos, information, and a certificate from the sanctuary. Some organizations and sanctuaries even send a little plushie of the sponsored animal.

If you want to add on to your gift, you could even get some of the sanctuary’s merch or find a little figurine of that animal. With so many sanctuaries that have this program, you can probably even choose an animal with the same name as your gift recipient. Sponsoring an animal for someone is one of the best gifts that you can give. It’s thoughtful, sustainable, ethical, easy to get, and will help provide life-saving care. What could be better?

Here are some of the sanctuaries that you can sponsor or symbolically “adopt” an animal from!

1. Farm Sanctuary

During the holidays, you have the opportunity to adopt an animal for $35 at Farm Sanctuary. You’ll immediately receive a digital certificate to give as a gift, which can be printed out for display or shared online! There are three animals available for sponsorship including, Jenny the pig, Biscuit the sheep, and Paula the cow! You can read each of the animals’ stories and sponsor one (or all!) of them here! These one-time donation sponsorships are a holiday special. If you’d like to view monthly and annual sponsorships, click here!

2. Gentle Barn

 

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There are so many animals to sponsor at one of the Gentle Barn‘s three locations. Different animals are different amounts from as low as $10, for a chicken or other bird, up to $50 for a horse. There are also cows, pigs, dogs, donkeys, an emu, a llama, goats, sheep, and turkeys. If you sponsor one of these animals, you’ll receive a Certificate of Sponsorship with a photo and bio in the mail. You’ll also get an email with monthly updates of how the animal is doing as well as a photo! You can read each of the animals’ stories and choose one to sponsor here.

3. Woodstock Farm Sanctuary

Right now, at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary, you can choose to sponsor one of their amazing chickens, turkeys, ducks, rabbits, goats, sheep, llamas, cows, or pigs. If you have a specific animal in mind, you can indicate your preference when you submit your form. If not, you can just choose the type of animal that you’d like to sponsor and they will pick one for you. The sponsorship is a 12-month commitment and you can choose to pay it all upfront or do so monthly. After you submit a sponsorship form, you’ll receive a certificate with your (or your gift recipient’s) name on it as well as a photo and the story of your sponsored animal. You can sponsor an animal here and look through the stories of different animals here!

4. Barn Sanctuary

From Lyra, the pig who was the runt of her litter and loves getting belly rubs to Jill, the sheep who is getting comfortable running in her prosthetics, there are so many amazing animals to sponsor at the Barn Sanctuary. Sponsors receive a certificate and photo via email or regular mail. You can choose an animal to sponsor and read their story here.

5. Catskill Animal Sanctuary

Catskill Animal Sanctuary offers sponsorships that are year-long and upwards of $180. When you sponsor an animal, you’ll receive exclusive photos and updates of your sponsored animal throughout the year, opportunities to schedule a visit with your animal, a one-year Sanctuary membership, free weekend tours from April through November, reduced admission to most special events, and eligibility to stay at The Homestead. This year, you’ll also receive a plushie version of the animal that you choose to sponsor!  You can read about and choose your animal here!

6. Animal Place

For just $25, you can sponsor one of Animal Place‘s awesome animal ambassadors. You can choose Panda, the cow burn survivor; Shelby, the lucky calf who fell off a transport truck; Verna, the would-be mother goat, or Cleo, the sweet piglet. You’ll receive a wallet-sized card with a picture of your sponsored animal, a full-size color photo with your animal’s story, and a subscription to our Animal Place Magazine. Choose an animal to support and read their story here!

7.  Pasado’s Safe Haven

When you sponsor an animal from Pasado’s Safe Haven, you’ll receive a custom card with a photograph of an animal of your chosen species. The card will include the animal’s rescue story and personality! The sponsorships range from $10 for a duck or chicken to $100 for a horse or $285 for the sanctuary family. You can choose an animal to sponsor here!

8. Life With Pigs

At Life With Pigs, you have the option to sponsor a chicken, turkey, pig, cow, or rabbit for $10 to $30 per month. These animals include Jenna, who was almost sent to a veal farm, and Millie, the cuddly pig! With a sponsorship, you will receive a photo of your animal, their story, and the chance to come and visit your sponsor animal in person at your convenience. You can read more stories here and sponsor one of these adorable animals here.

9. Animal Haven of Asheville

Sponsoring an animal at Animal Haven of Asheville costs $20 per month. You will receive an adoption certificate, a color photograph of your adopted animal, and a VIP tour to meet your chosen animals. You can learn more about sponsoring one of their animals here.

10. Safe Haven Wildlife Sanctuary

You can choose to sponsor any of Safe Haven Wildlife Sanctuary‘s permanent residents for a one-year period. For a lynx, serval, bobcat, fox, coyote, or macaw, the cost is $120; for a cougar, the cost is $260; and for a tiger, it’s $400. With a sponsorship, you’ll receive a thank-you letter with information about your animal, an adoption certificate, a photo of your animal, regular updates on your animal, and a subscription to their bi-annual newsletter! You can read each animal’s story and pick one to sponsor here.

There are so many other sanctuaries, shelters, and organizations that you can sponsor animals from. Here’s a list to start you off:

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