Resources

We recommend obedience training for all dogs. Working with your dog on basic obedience is a great way to bond and make your dog a better family member.

Bestfriends is an online resource that will provide you with a lot of helpful ideas, but it is not a substitute for a professional dog trainer.

This is not a comprehensive list of dog trainers in Winston-Salem. AARF does not affiliate with or promote any of these. When you call, be sure to mention if you have adopted your dog from a local rescue, as many trainers will offer an adoption discount. An asterisk (*) indicates that the trainer will also work with certain aggression issues. Please contact the facility/trainer for more information.

• Best Life Canine - Winston-Salem and surrounding areas

• Crown Jewel K9*- Winston-Salem and surrounding area

• Elite Canine - Winston-Salem

• Highland Canine Dog Training* - Harmony

• Hounds Tooth Academy* -Thomasville

• Imagine Canine Academy

• Jim Hodges Dog Training* - Winston-Salem

• K9 Coaching Academy

• Tri City Canine* - Winston-Salem

• Winston Salem Dog Training Club

• Unchaining Greensboro‍‍

• UNchain Winston - Builds free fences for qualified families, builds and distributes free dog houses, repairs existing fences, and loans portable dog pens for fostering and rescue. Houses for Hounds (an UNchain Winston program) through a partnership with Forsyth Humane Society, provides free dog houses, crates, and straw bedding to low-income Forsyth County residents so outdoor dogs can be brought indoors during the coldest months.

Below you’ll find loan and grant resources for financial assistance on vet care. You may also wish to apply for CareCredit, a healthcare credit card. If you are in urgent need, you may consider personal fundraising through a platform like GoFundMe.com or through social media channels.

Financial Assistance for Veterinary Care for DOGS and CATS

• American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) veterinary care for sick or injured pets that have been abandoned or for qualified owners.

• Dylan’s Hearts provides families struggling financially with the funds necessary to move treatment forward in an emergency or critical situation for the animals.

• Frankie’s Friends provides grants to assist with the cost of lifesaving or life-enhancing emergency or specialty care for pets whose families cannot afford the full cost of treatment.

• Fur-Ever Friends/Rico Fund - Serving all of North Carolina. Financial assistance for medical care for your pet, or a stray animal.

• Onyx and Breezy Foundation supports medical treatment for animals where hardship is present, as well as other endeavors that benefit the welfare of animals.

• Paws 4 A Cure provides financial assistance to qualified families throughout the United States who cannot afford veterinary care.

• Red Rover Relief- The Urgent Care Grants program helps animals who need urgent and emergency veterinary care.

• STARelief and Pet Assistance is a national organization that provides assistance for low-income families, physically or mentally impaired, U.S. military members and their families, homeless who own pets, senior citizens and retirees on a fixed income, victims of domestic violence, pets displaced due to natural disasters.

• The Magic Bullet Fund- provides financial assistance for pet cancer surgery and chemotherapy.

• The Pet Fund- provides financial assistance to qualified owners of domestic animals.

Financial Assistance for Veterinary Care for DOGS Only

• Canine Cancer Awareness - provides information and resources for canine cancer.

• The Mosby Foundationassists in the care of critically sick, injured, abused, and neglected dogs through financial support and public education.

• Trio Animal Foundation- assists shelters, rescues, and individuals by paying the medical bills of homeless pets.

Financial Assistance for Veterinary Care for Cats Only

• Diabetic Cats in Need

• Feline Veterinary Emergency Assistance (FVEAP) provides emergency financial assistance to cat and kitten guardians who are unable to afford veterinary services to save their companion with Vaccine Associated Sarcoma (VAS), also referred to as Injection Site Sarcoma (ISS).

• Forgotten Felines of Forsyth provides a low-cost TNR (trap-neuter-release) program.

• Marion’s Fund provides funding for sick or injured feral or stray cats.

First, do not assume the animal is homeless. There’s a good chance they have a family who loves and misses them!

Follow the P.A.C.K. Checklist to find the animal’s owner:

• POST information and pictures of the animal on Petco Love Lost: @petcolovelost or petcolove.org/lost

• ASK neighbors and local businesses if they recognize the pet. Share on social media and local lost & found pet groups.

• CHECK for an ID tag with owner info. Visit a vet’s office, shelter, or microchip station to check for a microchip.

• KEEP the animal safe. Provide a calm, secure space with food, water, and shelter while you search for the owner.

AARF maintains a list of local shelters and rescue organizations with a variety of services. This list is not comprehensive; there may be other nonprofit rescues in the community that aren’t included in this list. You can view and download the list HERE.

• Act quickly! Search your own property. Look under furniture, porches, in garages, drainage, pipes, or other possible hiding places.

• Make sure any microchip information is current.

• Report your lost or found pet on Petco Love Lost with a photo to make your pet visible to finders.

• View and download AARF’s resource guide for lost and found pets here.

• AARF Pet Food Pantry - Must apply: Food Assistance Application‍; PICK-UP: Tue-Fri, 12-5 p.m. Location: 302 Thurston Street, Winston-Salem. Call 336-768-7387 for availability.

• Ardmore United Methodist Church - First and third Thursday of the month at 5:15 p.m. Bob Martin Hall, 630 S. Hawthorne Road, Winston-Salem; 336-723-3695

• Fuzzy Friends Pet Food Pantry - Serving the Winston-Salem area. Only open in the fall and winter on the third Saturday of the month. Email to set up an appointment. 548 Friedberg Church Road, Winston-Salem; 336-692-6207

• Holy Cross Catholic Church - Education Building. Third Thursdays of the month from 10-11 a.m. or until supply is gone. Located in front of the education building at 616 S. Cherry St, Kernersville. In case of inclement weather, call 336-497-1767.

• Love Community Development - Mon, Wed, and Fri, 1-3 p.m. 3980 N. Liberty St, Winston-Salem; 336-886-5641; email

Please visit AARF’s rehoming information page.

• Central Spay Neuter and Wellness Clinic (Piedmont Triad) - provides affordable spay, neuter, wellness exams, microchipping, and vaccinations.

• Feral Cat Assistance Program (FCAP) - Greensboro-based rescue that improves the lives of local feral "community" cats through teaching humane cat trapping, loaning cat traps, and managing a monthly ultra-low-cost ($10 per feral cat) spay/neuter/vaccinate clinic.

• Forgotten Felines of Forsyth - provides a low-cost TNR (trap-neuter-release) program

• SpayKind (formerly Humane Solution) - provides low-cost vouchers to pet owners with financial hardships

• Humane Society of the Piedmont - provides spay/neuter and medical assistance for Guilford County residents

• Project B.A.R.K. (Bringing Animals Relief and Kindness) - focus on offering low-cost spay/neuter voucher assistance for pet owners in financial need in Guilford County only

• Sheets Pet Clinic (Greensboro) - low-cost spay/neuter services

• Spay USA - nationwide network and referral service for affordable spay/neuter. Their mission is to end the suffering of innocent dogs and cats by reducing the number of unwanted births.

• Spay/Neuter Hotline: 336-965-1059 for information on their 10/15 Fix Program. Guilford County Residents only.

• Surry Spay and Neuter Clinic (Ararat) - low-cost spay/neuter services. You do not need to live in Surry County to use these services.

• The Spay & Neuter Clinic of Alamance County (Burlington) - provides low-cost spay, neuter, and wellness for the general public

A New Start in Life (NSIL) program partners with Family Services to provide safety and care to pets while survivors of interpersonal violence stay at their shelter. NSIL, a PAW Alliance program, provides loving foster homes or lodging, food and treats, medical care, toys, and all other needs. After leaving the shelter, pets and humans are reunited. To qualify for this program, you must be a resident of the Family Services shelter. Learn more and apply on the PAW Alliance website.