PAWS Chicago - Community Outreach

09/05/2026

Helping Cats Near You is a “Trapping 101” workshop, a great introduction for people who are new to trapping cats.

09/05/2026

09/05/2026

Today, PAWS Chicago teamed up with Cats in Action, our largest community cat partner at the Lurie Clinic, for a special Spay Day dedicated to Chicago’s outdoor cats.

In just one day:
213 cats spayed or neutered
213 FVRCP vaccines
213 rabies vaccines
213 dewormer doses
213 microchips

That’s 213 cats returning to their neighborhoods healthier and thousands of future kittens prevented from being born outdoors.

Spay/neuter is at the heart of Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR), but caring for Chicago’s community cats goes beyond surgery.

Vaccines help protect cats from serious, contagious diseases, while parasite prevention and treatment help protect them from common internal and external parasites. Microchips provide permanent identification, helping outdoor cats get back to their known colonies and caretakers if they stray too far from home and are picked up by concerned neighbors.

After receiving care and recovering from surgery, community cats return to the outdoor homes they know, where dedicated colony caretakers continue to provide food, shelter, and ongoing monitoring.

And one Spay Day is just a snapshot of this work!

So far in 2026, PAWS Chicago has provided spay/neuter surgeries to 12,318 cats across our programs. Each one represents an opportunity to prevent unwanted litters, protect cats from disease, and help ensure they can be identified and returned home.

None of it happens without some amazing people!

A huge thank you to Cats in Action and the dedicated PAWS Chicago volunteers and colony caretakers who trapped cats, transported them to and from the clinic, monitored their recovery, and returned them safely home. And thank you to our incredible Lurie Clinic and Community Outreach staff and veterinary team for providing care to 213 cats in a single day.

Want to be part of the solution for outdoor cats in your neighborhood?

PAWS Chicago supports more than 700 registered colony caretakers across the city with free and low-cost TNR services, resources, and support. Whether you already feed outdoor cats or have simply noticed cats living on your block, you can help make your neighborhood’s colony healthier and prevent future litters.

Become a PAWS Chicago Sponsored Colony Caretaker:
https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/019d69129bb4792c88f735d00680047

09/04/2026

09/01/2026

We Are Hiring a Community Programs Coordinator!

PAWS Chicago is hiring a full-time Community Programs Coordinator to join our 360@CACC team, based on site, 40 hours a week at Chicago Animal Care and Control at 2741 S. Western Ave.

At the heart of this position is helping CACC animals find homes. The Coordinator will work directly with adopters throughout the adoption process, helping them meet animals, answering questions about behavior and care, supporting thoughtful matchmaking, and completing adoptions. They will also work closely with the volunteers and interns who support adoptions and other 360@CACC programs.

Beyond adoption, this role is part of the broader 360@CACC partnership between PAWS Chicago and CACC, working across programs that help animals move out of the shelter and help Chicago pet owners access resources to keep their pets.

The Coordinator will manage Rescue Ready, our program that helps prepare CACC animals for transfer to rescue partners, and support growing 360@CACC initiatives including Pet Resource Fairs, Homeward Bound Highway, and Pet Owner Support.

There is a lot happening within 360@CACC right now. In 2025, the partnership helped contribute to CACC's strongest adoption year on record and a 22 percent increase in animals transferred to rescue partners. We are continuing to build on that work, and this position will have the opportunity to contribute to both the day-to-day work of getting animals into homes and the development of programs that improve outcomes for pets and people across Chicago.

We are looking for someone who genuinely enjoys working with both people and animals. The right person will be confident handling dogs of all sizes and cats, comfortable in a busy shelter environment, able to coach and support others, and skilled at navigating compassionate and sometimes difficult conversations with adopters and community members.

Schedule: Tuesday through Saturday

Pay: $20.00–$23.00 per hour

If you know someone who would be a great fit for this work, please share this with them.

Apply at: https://www.pawschicago.org/careers

Questions can be directed to [email protected]

Estamos contratando a un(a) Coordinador(a) de Programas Comunitarios

PAWS Chicago está contratando a un(a) Coordinador(a) de Programas Comunitarios de tiempo completo para unirse a nuestro equipo de 360@CACC. Esta posición trabaja presencialmente, 40 horas por semana, en Chicago Animal Care and Control, ubicado en 2741 S. Western Ave.

Una parte central de este puesto es ayudar a los animales de CACC a encontrar un hogar. La persona en este puesto trabajará directamente con los adoptantes durante todo el proceso de adopción, ayudándolos a conocer a los animales, respondiendo preguntas sobre comportamiento y cuidado, apoyando la búsqueda de una buena opción para cada familia y completando las adopciones. También trabajará de cerca con los voluntarios y pasantes que apoyan las adopciones y otros programas de 360@CACC.

Además de las adopciones, este puesto forma parte de la colaboración más amplia de 360@CACC entre PAWS Chicago y CACC, trabajando en programas que ayudan a los animales a salir del refugio y a los dueños de mascotas de Chicago a acceder a recursos para conservar y cuidar a sus animales.

La persona en este puesto coordinará Rescue Ready, nuestro programa que ayuda a preparar a los animales de CACC para ser transferidos a organizaciones de rescate, y apoyará el crecimiento de otras iniciativas de 360@CACC, incluyendo las Ferias de Recursos para Mascotas, Homeward Bound Highway y Pet Owner Support.

360@CACC continúa creciendo. En 2025, nuestra colaboración contribuyó al mejor año de adopciones en la historia de CACC y a un aumento del 22 por ciento en animales transferidos a organizaciones de rescate. Seguimos desarrollando este trabajo, y esta posición tendrá la oportunidad de contribuir tanto al trabajo diario de ayudar a los animales a encontrar un hogar como al desarrollo de programas que mejoren los resultados para los animales y las personas en Chicago.

Buscamos a alguien que realmente disfrute trabajar tanto con personas como con animales. La persona ideal tendrá confianza manejando perros de todos los tamaños y gatos, se sentirá cómoda trabajando en el ambiente dinámico de un refugio, podrá orientar y apoyar a otras personas y tendrá la capacidad de manejar conversaciones compasivas y, en ocasiones, difíciles con adoptantes y miembros de la comunidad.

Horario: martes a sábado

Pago: $20.00–$23.00 por hora

Si conoce a alguien que sería una excelente opción para este puesto, por favor comparta esta publicación.

Postúlate en: https://www.pawschicago.org/careers

Preguntas: [email protected]

09/01/2026

Free spay/neuter, microchipping, and vaccines are available for pets in Englewood, West Englewood, Woodlawn, and Back of the Yards. If you have Medicaid or CountyCare, your pet can get preventative care at our Lurie Clinic at no cost.

Eligible zip codes: 60621, 60636, 60637, and 60609. Book online in minutes, no phone call required.

Schedule now: https://www.pawschicago.org/our-work/spayneuter/lurie-clinic

Servicios gratuitos de esterilización, castración, microchip y vacunas están disponibles para mascotas en Englewood, West Englewood, Woodlawn y Back of the Yards. Si tienes Medicaid o CountyCare, tu mascota puede recibir atención completa sin costo en nuestra Clínica Lurie.

Códigos postales elegibles: 60621, 60636, 60637 y 60609. Programa tu cita en línea en minutos, sin necesidad de llamar.

Programa tu cita ahora: https://www.pawschicago.org/our-work/spayneuter/lurie-clinic

08/30/2026

POV: you’re interning with the PAWS Chicago Community Outreach team.

Want to meet pet owners across the city who share your love of animals? Want to learn new ways to support pets and the people who care for them?

Our Community Outreach interns are out in the neighborhoods of Chicago every week with PAWS for Life and Community Cats, helping make preventative veterinary care and pet supplies reachable for families who need them.

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis: pawschicago.org/how-to-help/internships

08/28/2026

This is Missy and her babies.

Missy turned up in the West Englewood neighborhood on a block where the outdoor cats are well looked after. Her caretaker has been working with our Community Outreach team for years now, trapping, fixing, and returning the cats on her block one by one.

Missy was thin and hungry, and she found a colony where she would be fed and watched over. She also arrived already expecting.

Last week, the whole family came into the clinic. Missy got treatment for a cough she had been fighting. The kittens got their first exams, their first vaccines, and their own microchips. All of them are already scheduled to come back for a recheck, and Missy and her kittens will be spayed and neutered.

And our Community Outreach team will keep working alongside their caretaker to ensure every new cat who joins the colony is fixed and cared for by the community they reside in.

08/28/2026

Meet Daisy.

Daisy was adopted in Missouri during the COVID-19 pandemic, and she has been her dad's shadow ever since. She prefers him over anyone and anything else, though she tolerates her cat sibling well enough.

Daisy and her dad met the PAWS Chicago Community Outreach team at a community event and joined our PAWS for Life program. They came into the clinic to have Daisy's ear infection checked out, and while they were here she got fully caught up on her shots.

PAWS for Life provides veterinary care, vaccines, and pet supplies to pet owners in Englewood, West Englewood, Back of the Yards, and Woodlawn.
—
Conozcan a Daisy.

Daisy fue adoptada en Missouri durante la pandemia de COVID-19, y desde entonces no se separa de su papá. Lo prefiere a él por encima de cualquier persona o cosa, aunque tolera bastante bien a su hermano gato.

Daisy y su papá conocieron al equipo de Community Outreach de PAWS Chicago en un evento comunitario y se unieron a nuestro programa PAWS for Life. Vinieron a la clínica para revisarle el oído a Daisy, y durante la visita ella se puso completamente al día con sus vacunas.

La medicina preventiva es importante.
PAWS for Life lleva atención veterinarian, vacunas y suministros para mascotas a dueños de mascotas en Englewood, West Englewood, Back of the Yards y Woodlawn.