Helping ARMAC

ARMAC always needs help. How can you help ARMAC? There are lots of ways!

Foster an Orphan

The number one limiting factor on the number of dogs we can help is the availability of homes to foster orphan dogs. If there's no place to put a dog, we can't save it. (Boarding at a commercial kennel is prohibitively expensive unless it is for a definite period after which we expect a foster home to become available.)

The urgency of our need for qualified foster homes cannot be overstated. ARMAC receives an average of twenty calls per month from owners wanting to give up their Akitas or area shelters who have Akitas in their facilities. Out of these, we are only able to help at most one or two, due to our lack of foster homes. Even a single home that can foster a single dog can help us save several more dogs each year!

Fostering is a lot of work, but it is also very fulfilling. Helping to save the life of an Akita who would otherwise be euthanized is a joy that can be surpassed only by experiencing the satisfaction of watching the Akita you fostered in his new and loving "forever home." Wow! You can't have a better feeling than that!

The process of applying to be a foster home is very similar to that of adoption. You can see our foster home guidelines, application, and contract on line. Simply complete and submit a foster home application, then we will review your application, one or more adoption coordinators will interview you, and we'll conduct a house check. When your application is approved, you are well on your way to helping ARMAC save many more Akitas from an otherwise certain death.

Baka is a perfect example of a wonderful Akita who almost didn't make it. When the Stambaughs heard of Baka's plight, they stepped forward and offered to foster this happy, sweet tempered four-month-old Akita puppy. The Stambaughs' foster application was put on the fast track and shortly after Baka's ordeal began it ended when he was taken into the loving foster care of the Stambaughs.

Of course, there's no need to wait until you hear about a specific Akita in trouble! Contact Jodi Marcus (703)730-0844 or Puller Lanigan (301)680-0788 now for further information about the ARMAC foster care program, so that you'll be approved and ready when we get that call!

Volunteer

Aside from fostering orphans, we need volunteers to:

Conduct house checks and interviews with prospective adopters
Evaluate dogs at shelters
Assist with transport
Help with accounting
Photograph available dogs for the web site

If you can help with any of these needs, please call Jodi Marcus (703)730-0844 or Puller Lanigan (301)680-0788.

In addition, The ARMAC Store is always looking for new artwork. If you'd like to contribute your own work, please e-mail service@armacstore.org

Donate

Credit Card or Check

We are always accepting donations; no amount is too small or too large! We are a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, so your contribution is tax deductible in the US (to the extent permitted by law). You can use a credit card to donate through PayPal or Network for Good.

With any donation of $50 or more, we offer a free subscription to our newsletter, Uniquely Akita. Be sure to include your mailing address with your donation.

You may also want to consider our Virtual Fostering program, which allows you to choose an orphan to sponsor.

Sell on eBay

With the help of MissionFish, you can now sell items on eBay and donate all or part of the final sale price to ARMAC. You'll get a special listing on the MissionFish web site and at eBay, plus a charity ribbon on your listing to let buyers know the auction is for charity

To start:

Visit www.MissionFish.org
Get registered
Choose an item to sell
Write an item title and description
List your item through MissionFish and indicate that it will benefit Akita Rescue Mid-Atlantic Coast.
Complete your transaction- MissionFish collects your donation and passes it on to us.

Goods

We are always in need of items used in keeping dogs:

Collars: 18-22" good quality choke chain
Leads: 4' and 6' cotton web
I.D. tags
Shampoo: Mane 'N' Tail, Cardinal
Crates: 500# and 700# VariKennels (or equivalent)
Grooming equipment: slicker brushes, greyhound combs, shedding blades
Chainlink dog runs
Baby gates
Excercise pens (ex-pens) for large dogs/puppies
Safe dog toys
Dog food and treats: must not contain pork or beets

If you can help with any of these needs, please call Jodi Marcus (703)730-0844 or Puller Lanigan (301)680-0788.

We also need donated items for our fundraising auctions. Items do not need to be Akita-related. If you have something to contribute, please contact Lisa Gray, 703-257-9298.

The ARMAC Store

We have a store where we sell a wide variety of products featuring Akitas. We have dozens of products, including shirts and sweatshirts, mugs, posters, rubber stamps, and more! Almost all of the nearly two dozen different designs were created specially for ARMAC and are not available anywhere else!

This store is owned and operated by ARMAC, so all our profits go right to ARMAC.

Our Partners

Through affiliate and referral programs, we have partnered with a number of on-line and local merchants and services. When you do business with them, a percentage of your purchase will be donated back to ARMAC.

NuTech Solutions: Digitally mastered custom art - you send a photo, and they will turn it into a framed work of art. Specify ARMAC in the comments section when ordering, and they will donate $10 to us for each piece you buy.
Training by Tressa: Professional dog training in Silver Spring using positive training techniques. Akita and all-breed classes available! We've taken several ARMAC adoptees through these classes, and can recommend them without reservation. Visit http://www.professorofpaws.com/ or call 443-995-8907 - say that you were referred by ARMAC, and $20 of your class fee will be donated back to ARMAC.
Buy For Charity: When you do your on-line shopping, start at Buy For Charity and up to 35% of your purchase will benefit ARMAC! Participating merchants include the places you probably already shop - Barnes & Noble, Walmart, Chadwicks of Boston... the list goes on and on, more than 250 stores! Just visit http://www.buyforcharity.com to sign up (it's free), choose Akita Rescue Mid-Atlantic Coast as your cause, then start all of your on-line shopping from there. It's that easy!
iGive.com: This is another shopping portal, similar to Buy For Charity. Sign up, choose Akita Rescue Mid-Atlantic Coast as your cause, and start all your on-line shopping from http://www.iGive.com/ARMAC!
Canine Medicine Chest: All natural herbal remedies for pets. Use this link to visit their web site, and ARMAC will be credited for 20% of your purchases. In addition, if you have a web site you may want to become an ARMAC sub-associate. Then, any purchase made through your web site will also benefit ARMAC!
Cafepress.com: Cafepress.com lets you custom-design tee shirts, mugs, posters, and many other products. You can design items just for yourself, or you can open your own on-line store for free! List "armac" as the referring storeid when you open an account, and ARMAC will get a small referral bonus for every product sold with your design, whether you buy it yourself or sell it through your free on-line store!
Zazzle.com: Posters, shirts, and more - choose from thousands of designs, or create your own! Either way, use this link and ARMAC will get a 7% referral bonus for your purchases.
ShelterCare Pet Insurance Programs: Every time an application for a ShelterCare Pet Insurance Program (ShelterCare gift policies not included) is completed through this link, ARMAC will receive $25.
Furrykids.net: The resource center for naturally healthy pets.