Financial Help For Sick Dogs: Brown Dog Foundation & Other Organizations That Help With Vet Bills (By State)

Need help with vet bills? Wondering how to apply to get financial help for your dog?

Below is a list of the best organizations that help pay vet bills for sick dogs, injured dogs, and dogs with health issues in every state.

The world needs more non-profit organizations like this! The Brown Dog Foundation is from my neck of the woods.

Since I live in Nashville… and I have dogs… and most of my friends have dogs… and the odds of being unable to afford emergency vet treatment for our pets at some point is quite likely… I’m thrilled to hear that something like this is available here in Middle Tennessee!

The Brown Dog Foundation helps dog owners who are faced with expensive vet bills in order to save their dog’s life.

As long as you’re willing and able to pay a portion of the veterinarian’s cost to save your dog’s life, the Brown Dog Foundation will pay the rest.

We know that each Emergency Vet Clinic in the U.S. encounters 3 to 5 families every day who bring a pet in with a treatable condition, but due to some temporary financial crisis, they opt for euthanasia because they can’t afford treatment. We want to give every family an option. That is why, everyday, we are out there raising money so if you find yourself in a financial crisis when your pet needs Veterinary Care — you don’t have to think twice. Turn to Brown Dog Foundation for help. ~Brown Dog Foundation

Their motto is “We raise money so you can have peace of mind.” I absolutely LOVE that!

Check out this story about the Brown Dog Foundation from the local TV news.

I first learned of the Brown Dog Foundation that’s right here in Nashville from Dogster’s dog blog.

Trust me, I know how stressful dog surgery and emergency vet bills can be. My dog tore his ACL while running in the backyard, and it cost us $2,500 for him to get TPLO surgery.

 

If you need help with emergency vet bills but don’t live in Tennessee, check out the following organizations that can help with vet bills in other parts of the United States…

 

Organizations That Help With Emergency Vet Bills

 

Financial Help With Vet Bills – All Dogs

BirchBark Foundation
They provides financial grants to animal owners who are unable to partially or fully cover the cost of their dog’s emergency or critical care. Geriatric pets are not eligible.

Brown Dog Foundation
Dedicated to helping families who find themselves in a temporary financial crisis at the same time their pet requires life-saving treatment or life-sustaining medications.

Canine Cancer Awareness
They work with veterinarians by providing help with vet bills for dogs with cancer whose families cannot afford treatment.

Care Credit
A credit card for veterinary care. You get special financing and low monthly payment options, no up-front costs, and no-prepayment penalties — so you can keep your dog healthy and happy. A great place to start when you need financial help with vet bills.

Dogs On Deployment
As a member of the U.S. Military, the last thing you need to worry about is your pet’s care during your service commitments. Dogs On Deployment provides boarding for your pets during your service commitments. They also help with vet bills for military pet owners during times of emergency.

Go Fund Me
Create an online fundraiser to cover the cost of expensive veterinary bills. This site makes it easy to raise money for your pet’s medical bills.

Handicapped Pets Foundation
Dedicated to the health and well-being of elderly, disabled, and injured pets. They donate mobility equipment to pets in need.

Labrador Life Line
They help with vet bills for owners and rescuers of Labrador Retrievers in need. They provide eligible Labradors with urgent care and short-term medical treatment.

Magic Bullet Fund
They assist you in raising donations to get help with emergency vet bills. You must participate in the fundraising for your pet and help bring in donations, as well.

Mosby Foundation
They provide non-emergency assistance with pet treatment that is needed but has not yet been performed.

Onyx & Breezy Foundation
An organization know for helping pets receive necessary medical treatment that the pet owner cannot afford at the present time. Payments are made directly to veterinarians, pharmacies, etc.

Paws 4 A Cure
Helping families that are in need of non-routine veterinary financial assistance for their dog or cat.

Pet Fund
Provides financial aid to owners of domestic animals who need veterinary care. They help with emergency vet bills — beyond the normal expenses of vaccination, spay & neuter surgeries, food, and routine veterinary care. assist pet owners in covering medical costs

Pets Are Wonderful Support (PAWS)
They provide free and subsidized veterinary services. They also have a free pet food bank.

Pets Of The Homeless
The only national organization focused exclusively on feeding and providing veterinary health care to pets that belong to homeless people.

Pyramedic Trust
They help with emergency vet bills for purebred Great Pyrenees that are in dire need of medical attention and whose owner/rescuer find they are unable to cover the basic costs of veterinary care.

RedRover Relief
They focus on bringing animals from crisis to care. One of the ways they do this is by providing financial assistance to pet owners and animal rescuers to obtain urgent veterinary care.

Rose’s Fund
This group financially assists pet owners and Good Samaritans who have an animal with a good prognosis for a healthy life, but are at a financial loss.

Sam Simon Foundation
Saving the lives of dogs to enrich the lives of people. This mobile veterinary clinic provides free surgical services to families with a total household income less than $40,000/year. (Your dog must already be spayed or neutered or become spayed/neutered at the time of the surgery.)

ScratchPay
They provide payment plans for veterinary care — so you can get your dog the care they need first, then worry about the payment later. Affordable rates as low as 0% APR. No hidden fees. No prepayment penalty. No deferred interest. No surprises. A good place to start when you need financial help with vet bills.

Shakespeare Animal Fund
After the loss of a beloved Cocker Spaniel “Shakespeare” who died after an expensive illness, this group was founded to help others who are facing financial problems while trying to save their pet.

Top Dog Foundation
They assist in situations where the owner wants to keep their aging dog (10 years of age and older), but cannot afford procedures or medications necessary to allow for a good quality of life. A great place to start if you need financial help with vet bills for a senior dog.

Waggle
A place to set up an online fundraiser to help pay for your dog’s vet bills. To eliminate online fraud, Waggle (formerly Pet Chance) pays the veterinarian directly once treatment has been provided to your dog. The hospital/clinic sends an invoice to Waggle, and the invoice is paid within 30 days.

Wells Fargo Health Advantage Veterinary Financing
This popular bank offers affordable financing for general veterinary care and treatment procedures, emergency clinic treatment and procedures, pet hospital care, dental care, allergy, and arthritis treatment.

 

Financial Assistance For Dogs – By State

Arizona

• Animal Emergency Care Fund (AECF) – They help you find a veterinarian or emergency hospital in your area that will allow you to make payments or allow the AECF to make payments on your behalf.

California

• Actors And Others For Animals – They help the pets from low- or fixed-income families receive needed veterinary care in Los Angeles and the surrounding counties.
• Animal Assistance League Of Orange County – Provides financial donations to low-income, elderly, and disabled pet owners who need help with transportation, emergency, and routine veterinary care — as well as pet food supplies for those suffering financial hardships in Orange County California.
• Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) – They provide low-income residents of Contra Costa County, California with low-cost, non-emergency veterinary care for their pets.
• Face Foundation – Offers financial assistance for emergency veterinary surgeries and procedures directly to veterinary hospitals for pet owners in San Diego county who are facing financial hardship. Your pet must be diagnosed with an immediately life-threatening condition and have a good-to-excellent prognosis if treated.
• Ohlone Humane Society – Through their Companion Animal Special Assistance Program, this organization provides financial assistance to Fremont, Union City, and Newark residents with limited incomes whose companion animals have emergency veterinary needs.
• Paw Fund – In addition to providing free mobile vaccination clinics, they also have a Medical Emergency Fund that can help with emergency vet bills. They only assist those who are in extreme need.
• The Acme Foundation – Provides long term quality vet care to seriously ill cats and dogs of low-income clients who are senior citizens or disabled in Lake County, California.

Colorado

• Cartwright Foundation – Helps responsible pet owners in the greater Denver/Front Range, Colorado area with financial assistance for unanticipated medical or surgical costs for their pets — when it has been determined that without this assistance, the pet’s life or well-being is in jeopardy.
• Colorado State University’s Companion Care Fund – If you can prove financial need, you will receive $100 to help with vet bills — after you’ve exhausted all other possible financial resources.
• Colorado State University’s Pets Forever Program – Helps low-income elderly and disabled Larimer County residents maintain ownership of their pets for as long as possible. They strive to improve the health and well-being of pets and owners by providing help with emergency vet bills and other resources.
• Pet Samaritan Fund – Provides financial assistance for dogs and their owners who are unable to afford veterinary care for their pet in Salt Lake and the surrounding area.

Connecticut

• Home For Life Grant – They provide financial assistance for emergency medical care, emergency boarding, foster care, spay/neuter, routine medical care (vaccines, microchip, etc), and end-of-life services. Their grants are typically between $100 and $500.

District of Columbia

• Fetch A Cure – Applicants must live in the states of Virginia, DC, or Maryland, and the pet in need must have a confirmed diagnosis of cancer.
• PETS-DC – Dedicated to improving the health and well being of people living with HIV/AIDS or other disabling conditions and their companion pets. They provide pet food, veterinary care, grooming, and more at no cost to individuals in the Metropolitan Washington area.

Florida

• Emma’s Foundation For Canine Cancer – You must live in Florida (or New England). They provide financial assistance for dogs who, due to the owner’s/caretaker’s financial constraints, would not be able to get cancer treatment without assistance.
• Frankie’s Friends – They help with emergency vet bills for pets with life-threatening illness or injury. The pet must be recommended for Hope Fund support by their attending veterinarian in the Tampa/Clearwater in order to receive financial assistance.
• The Pet Project – People living with a terminal disease in Broward County, Florida can receive pet care and maintenance at low or no cost.
• The Xena Fund – They provide emergency vet care for all pets in Key West and the Lower Keys.

Georgia

• Pets Are Loving Support (PALS) – Provides pet care including free food and basic veterinary care & support to the companion pets of senior citizens, critically ill, and disabled Atlanta residents who are physically unable to work.

New Jersey

• God’s Creatures Ministry – Through their Veterinary Charity Fund, they provide up to $50 per pet to help with emergency vet bills, based on need.
• Vet-i-Care – They help by providing financial assistance for dogs with treatable, yet urgent, health conditions — as long as there’s a good prognosis following treatment.

New York

• NY Save Animals in Veterinary Emergency (SAVE) – Their goal is for every pet owner residing in one of the 5 boroughs of New York City who is truly in need of financial assistance to be able to take their pet to any participating veterinary hospital for emergency veterinary care.

North Carolina

• The Sergei Foundation – They provide financial help with vet bills for companion animals — with the goal of keeping them with their human family members. If you’ve been the permanent owner of your dog for a least 6 months and have had vet care (to verify ownership of the animal), then you can apply for assistance.

Ohio

• Jake Brady Memorial Fund – They provide funding for corrective, suitable, and life-saving medical treatment for companion animals of families in need.

Oregon

• DoveLewis Velvet Assistance Fund – Provides financial assistance to low-income pet owners in NW Portland. They will help cover the cost of your pet’s medical treatment in an emergency.
• Operation D.O.G. – They provide financial assistance in the form of veterinary care for dogs of families experiencing financial hardship in Marion and Polk counties, Oregon.

Be sure to check this list of state organizations that help with vet bills bills and this one too.

 

Financial Help For Service Dogs

Assistance Dog United Campaign
Provides financial assistance to individuals who have the need for an assistance dog but have difficulty in raising the necessary funds and to people and programs whose purpose is to provide assistance dogs to people with disabilities.

International Association Of Assistance Dog Partners (IAADP)
Through their Veterinary Care Partnership program, the IAADP assists dog partner members to provide help for their canine partners if a sudden illness or injury requires high cost veterinary intervention, beyond their financial means.

Shore Service Dogs
They provide custom trained service dogs that help return mobility and independence to people’s lives. They also help you get financial assistance for the costs associated with getting and keeping a service dog.

 

Pet Insurance & Holistic Treatments Are Good Too

Pet health insurance will prevent you from having to pay upfront for emergency vet bills.

I have heard so many times how thankful dog owners were that they had pet insurance in place before their dog experienced a health emergency!

And I also know of several pet owners whose dogs with cancer were given a limited amount of time to live, but they far exceeded those times simply by focusing on holistic care for their sick dog.

Here are our best articles about dog health insurance and holistic dog care — to help you choose the right course of action for your dog:

Pet Health Insurance vs. Pet Savings Account — Good to read before you start pet health insurance. See the pros & cons of each and which option makes the most sense.

Is Pet Insurance Worth It? How It Works & What To Look For – The difference between basic plans and full-coverage plans. How to find the right pet insurance plan for your dog.

6 Ways To Get Help With Vet Bills After A Dog Emergency – Pet health insurance is only one of your 6 options. Animal welfare organizations that help with vet bills are another. There are 4 other ways to get financial help for sick dogs.

Dog Cancer Treatment Options – If your dog has cancer, start here! See the various treatment options for canine cancer, plus tips to help you cope, and some insight about the ways that dogs cope with cancer.

Holistic Canine Cancer Options To Consider – One dog owner’s personal experience with canine bladder cancer and canine lung cancer. See the alternative health options that worked wonders for her dog!

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