HOW IT WORKS:
Your charitable fund is established through your VCF membership.The Veterinary Care Foundation is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit charitable foundation created for the specific purpose of helping veterinary practices fund the discounted and no charge care they generously provide to hardship cases, rescue groups or as good Samaritans.
Unlike other veterinary charities, 100% of every contribution to the Veterinary Care Foundation and its member practices go directly to improving the quality of life of pets and their people; all Foundation operating expenses are met by membership dues paid by veterinarians.
We make it easy for clients to donate, and all donations are tax-deductible.
How It Works:
1) You Become A Member of the Veterinary Care Foundation. Annual fees are paid to the Veterinary Care Foundation and are deductible as a business expense to the member veterinary practice.
2) Your charitable account is activated upon payment (online or mail a check or call us with a credit card).
3) You begin building your fund by promoting it at your practice and through your social media accounts. All donations are 100% tax deductible. Once you login to your account on our site, go to My Account page and you’ll see a blue button at the bottom that will create a direct donation link to your account. Copy and paste this to use as a fund portal on your practice’s website, or promote it on social media. Your clients and friends will donate into your fund.
4) When you have a case that you feel deserves charitable funding, go to the VCF website and Request Funds in the form of a grant from your charitable fund. You may not request more than is currently in your fund. VCF then releases a grant check back to your clinic to cover the expenses.
Charitable Guidelines – Use of Funds:
Foundation funds are intended for the following use:
- Funding for Good Samaritan cases
- Assist pet owners in financial crisis
- Care for police/fire and service animals
- Provide support to pets of families in crisis
- Funding for pets harmed or displaced due to local disaster (such as weather, fire, etc)
- Other charitable purposes at the practice’s discretion
Member Services:
Offering clients the ability to make tax deductible donations will encourage contributions to the practice. In addition, Veterinary Care Foundation provides the following with the annual membership fee:
- Brochures
- Ease of access for donating/accounting
- Thank you letters/tax receipts
- A program tailored to meet individual practice needs
- Sympathy cards may be purchased and personalized for memorial contributions to clients’ pets (50% of the cost of the cards is donated back to your fund)
- Welcome cards may be purchased and personalized for new clients (50% of the cost of the cards is donated back to your fund)
- Personalized website and social media links to direct your practice’s traffic to your VCF fund’s donation portal.
- Full reports on your donors and their donations are available through your Client Portal.
Donations to a Specific Veterinary Practice:
Funds donated to support an individual veterinary practice are earmarked only for use by that practice. Member veterinarians can request those funds based on the Charitable Guidelines listed below.
Donations to the Veterinary Care Foundation Good Samaritan Fund:
In addition to funds earmarked for individual member practices; funds may be donated to support the Foundation’s overall mission. Distribution of these funds will be determined by the Veterinary Care Foundation Advisory Board.
