A new initiative is brightening the lives of dogs and cats at Minneapolis Animal Care and Control.

The Minneapolis City Council approved the shelter’s new “Sponsor a Kennel” program on May 26, which aims to attract more donations for animals in their care.

The program was created in partnership with MACC Pack, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of animals in MACC’s public shelter. 

Kristen Kimsey, the president of the MACC Pack board of directors, said the idea was first brought to their attention when a volunteer visited a different shelter in Florida and learned about a similar program.

Kimsey said donations received through the program will help provide enrichment, like treats and toys, to reduce animals’ stress and improve their temperaments. The ultimate goal is to help more animals find permanent homes.

MACC shelter director Anthony Schendel said Kimsey was the one to approach him with the idea for the Sponsor a Kennel program. He thought it would be a great way to raise money for the shelter.

“We saw it as an opportunity to help the animals in our care,” Schendel said. “I worked with the city attorney’s office, and we did a presentation to the city council and got the program approved to receive donations on an ongoing basis.”

Kimsey said the program includes two different tiers. For $600 a year, or $50 a month, donors receive a plaque on a kennel for their sponsorship. For $1,200 a year, or $100 a month, sponsors receive a plaque and monthly updates on all the animals in the kennel.

The program officially launches July 6, but sponsorships are already being accepted on the MACC Pack website, and plaques are beginning to appear on kennels throughout the shelter.

Danielle Joerger, a shelter manager for MACC, said she hopes the program will help the shelter provide more medical care for the animals it takes in.

“We’ve done a lot to expand what we can do medically here, having vets on staff and different diagnostic tools,” Joerger said.

Kimsey said that, because MACC is a public shelter, it is required to accept every animal brought in, often stretching resources thin. The shelter took in more than 3,300 animals in 2025 alone, so the program will provide much-needed support, Kimsey said.

MACC currently has a live release rate of more than 92%, which Kimsey said is quite high for a municipal shelter of its size. Keeping the shelter’s live release rate as high as possible has been a goal of MACC Pack since Kimsey created the nonprofit four years ago. 

MACC maintains authority over all shelter decision-making, while MACC Pack helps fundraise and support the shelter in any way it can.

Treats, toys, enrichment and medical costs are not the only expenses that the Sponsor a Kennel program will help cover. Schendel said donations through the program will also help MACC host more “Clear the Shelter” events, where adoption fees are waived for prospective pet owners.

Joerger said many people do not realize the MACC offers adoptions since the organization also serves as the city’s animal control agency. All adoptable animals at MACC are vaccinated, microchipped and spayed or neutered. Schendel said the adoption fees are kept low, and Minneapolis residents can adopt cats and dogs older than six months at no cost other than the pet license fee.

Joerger said the Sponsor a Kennel program is especially impactful because all the animals served by MACC are from the local area.

“These are local animals that need help,” Joerger said.