If you’ve been following The Cat-alyst, you’ve seen us dig into what good animal housing looks like. But information alone doesn’t fix a kennel ward. At some point, improvement requires resources. And money for housing upgrades is not always easy to come by in animal sheltering.
Right now, there just happens to be a handful of opportunities worth knowing about. If your shelter is ready to make improvements to animal housing, this is a good moment to pay attention.
One note upfront: I have no financial relationship with any of the organizations or vendors mentioned here, and none of them asked me to write this. I’m sharing them because this is what The Cat-alyst is for: practical information that helps you do better work for the animals in your care.
Start Here: Know What You’re Solving Before You Apply
The shelters that do best with grant applications know exactly what problem they’re solving before they start writing.
Can your cats access a second compartment while their primary space is being cleaned? If not, they are at significantly higher risk for upper respiratory infection, and you have a documentable problem a funder can understand. We covered the evidence behind this in the post on preventing feline URI and double-compartment housing.
Do your individual cat spaces meet ASV Guidelines minimums for size, retreat opportunity, and enrichment? Are group-housed cats in appropriate numbers with compatible companions? See the post on individual cat housing for good context.
Do your dog housing options match the behavioral needs of the dogs in your care? Do you have any individual room capacity, or are all dogs in open kennel runs? The post on individual rooms and group housing for dogs covers the evidence and the tradeoffs.
The answers to these questions are your grant application. Funders want to know what the impacts of investing in housing will be, and how you will measure the difference.
Current Animal Shelter Housing Grants and Funding Opportunities (as of May 2026)
ASPCA Northern Tier Shelter Initiative Quality of Life Grant
For shelters with physical facilities in Alaska, Washington, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, or Wisconsin.
Applications close at 5:00 p.m. Central Time on May 29, 2026. NTSI is offering two free office hours sessions — May 12 and May 20 — to walk through questions about the ASV Guidelines and the application process.
The ASPCA NTSI Quality of Life Grant is open now through May 29, 2026. It funds housing upgrades specifically tied to ASV Guidelines compliance, with individual grants ranging from $5,000 to $25,000.
Past-funded projects include exactly the kinds of upgrades we’ve been writing about here: portals to retrofit cat housing to double compartments, pass-through or guillotine doors to retrofit dog kennels, and new housing units that allow animals to make normal postures such as sitting, standing, stretching, and lying down.
More information and the application are at ASPCAPRO.
Midmark’s Close the Gap Program
Applications are open through July 1, 2026. Orders must be placed by December 1, 2026.
This is not a grant. Midmark’s Close the Gap program offers a 5% or 9% promotional discount on eligible equipment for qualifying animal shelters, humane societies, rescues, and municipal organizations. Covered equipment includes animal housing, cabinetry, exam and surgery tables, instrument processing equipment, and anesthesia and monitoring equipment.
Close the Gap is a way to stretch a budget you already have, not a funding source. If you have a housing purchase planned and the dollars are committed, a 5 to 9 percent discount on a significant order is real money. If you’re still trying to secure funding, pair this with a grant or capital campaign.
More information is at midmark.com/animal-health/close-the-gap.
Kenneth A. Scott Charitable Trust
I don’t know much about this one, but the Kenneth A. Scott Charitable Trust appears to fund equipment that directly benefits homeless or injured animals which makes it a real option for shelters looking to purchase caging upgrades, portals, kennel retrofits, or similar items.
Geographic eligibility is specific. The trust covers Ohio and selected counties in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, and Wisconsin. Verify your county’s eligibility on their website before investing time in a letter of inquiry.
The trust runs on a rolling LOI (letter of inquiry) cycle. The next LOI deadline is July 15, 2026, with applications due August 17 and decisions expected in November. The process starts with a letter of inquiry; the trust will confirm whether a full application is appropriate before you commit to writing one.
A few things to know going in:
The trust funds equipment and specific programs. Capital projects like construction, renovation, or facility buildout are explicitly ineligible. Hopefully, housing would fall under equipment, but feel free to reach out to them to ask. Eligible organizations need 501(c)(3) status, 100% board financial participation, adherence to accepted health and safety standards, at least five years of operation, and an annual budget exceeding $50,000.
More information and the LOI are at kennethscottcharitabletrust.org.
Greater Good Charities Rescue Rebuild
This isn’t cash. It’s a crew.
Greater Good Charities sends a skilled renovation team to selected facilities to do the physical work of renovation. They’ve worked in 49 states. Shelters can apply for a Rescue Rebuild visit through their website.
This model works well for organizations that need significant changes to their physical space but don’t have the bandwidth to manage a construction project or the capital to fund one outright. The tradeoff is that you have less control over timing and scope than you would with a cash grant, and projects are selected competitively.
If your housing challenges are primarily about the space itself rather than specific equipment, and if a team showing up to do the work sounds more useful than a check, this is worth exploring. In the past they have helped install portals in cat cages.
More information is at greatergood.org/rescue-rebuild.
Need Help Figuring Out Where Your Housing Stands?
If you’d like a set of outside eyes on that process or help building the case for what your facility needs reach out me!
If your shelter needs help identifying housing gaps, prioritizing upgrades, or making the case to funders, Paws to Elevate Shelter Consultation Services provides evidence-based guidance tailored to your facility. Schedule a free discovery call or explore our services to learn more.
AI Disclaimer: This blog post was created with the assistance of AI tools and reviewed and edited by Becky Stuntebeck, DVM, DABVP (Shelter Medicine). It is provided for general informational purposes. Verify current eligibility requirements and deadlines directly with each funding organization before applying.
