Animal Shelter Party (11-16yr) Shelter Helpers

My daughter really loves animals and she wanted to do something to help them. For her 13th birthday party, we decided to have everyone volunteer at our local animal shelter. The shelter's owner and manager really appreciated our help and I am sure the animals did too (Have every guest bring some dog treats or food to donate to the shelter - optional)! We had the parents drop off everyone at my house and then we drove to the animal shelter (2 mini vans and  9 guests) then we drove everyone to the shelter that is about 2 miles away from our home. Try not to drive too far because some parents are not comfortable with it. 

INVITATION: We made our invitation online. We got a picture of paw prints around the broader of a blank picture and the added all of the party information in a word document. Then, we went to Kinko's/ FedEx store to have them printed on card stock paper. You could also just buy regular un-filled out invitations. 

DECORATIONS: We only decorated our dining room because we weren't really going to be there for that long. After the shelter we came back to my house for dinner, cake, gifts, and games so there really wasn't a need for that many decorations. 

ACTIVITIES: Be sure to let the manager of the shelter know that you will be coming to help out so they have something for you to do. At our party we: -Bathed some puppies -Cleaned kennels -Fed the cats -Walked the bigger dogs 

GAMES: We didn't really play any games. We did dance near the end of the party but, nothing game" related 

COSTUMES: When we got back we made some dog ear head bands. No one really needed to dress up or anything. You could just come in shorts and a t-shirt. 

PARTY SNACK: For the party treats we bought some "Scooby Snacks" (cinnamon flavored cookies shaped like dog bones) and a fruit arrangement from Edible Arrangements. We also had pizza for dinner. 

CAKE: We had a paw print cake! I bought a regular circle cake from our local bakery that was covered in a light brown icing. Then we bought 4 cupcakes with the same colored icing and put them near at the top of the cake to make a paw print! This is a lot cheaper than having a custom cake made and a lot cooler than just a plain regular cake. 

FAVORS: Everyone got to take home a bag with a paw print pencil a bunch of candy and a thank you card. Im sure everyone enjoyed the party! It is really creative and different from what anyone else has done!"