PEI Humane Society Success Story

About PEI Humane Society

Founded in 1974, the Prince Edward Island Humane Society (PEIHS) has been at the heart of animal welfare for over 50 years. What began as a passionate group of volunteers has grown into the province’s only animal shelter, serving a population of 200,000. The organization provides essential services ranging from animal protection and sheltering to fostering, community education, and veterinary care.

Over the past year alone, PEIHS has consistently cared for over 200 animals at a time, thanks to a province-wide foster network. Beyond sheltering, the organization plays a vital role in fostering and rehoming of animals, and community education – partnering with groups like Cat Action Team for Trap-Neuter-Return programs and working closely with the Atlantic Veterinary College to train the next generation of veterinarians. PEIHS is a pillar of the island’s animal welfare landscape.

“For the entire province of around 200,000 people, we are the only animal shelter. Everyone knows where to throw their support when it’s needed or if there’s an emergency, who to call.” — Ashley Travis, Development & Communications Coordinator, PEI Humane Society.

Relationship with CanadaHelps

PEI Humane Society has been using CanadaHelps for nearly a decade. Over time, the charity has expanded how it uses the platform to meet its fundraising needs and better manage donor relationships.

Today, PEIHS uses CanadaHelps for:

– Custom donation forms for P2P, Events and general fundraising

– Monthly and one-time donor campaigns

– Securities donation processing

– Automated tax receipts and thank-you’s

– Donor management, reporting, and more.

“The ease of the transition was wonderful. We have quite a vast difference in tech savviness amongst our team. Having a system that is as simple to use day-to-day and as simple to onboard our team on as CanadaHelps was really wonderful,” shared Ashley.

 

Fundraising: A Multi-Faceted Approach

PEI Humane Society relies on a diverse mix of fundraising approaches to sustain its $1.5 million annual operating budget, blending traditional giving, community partnerships, and innovative digital campaigns.

💡 Annual Giving Season: End-of-year giving is their largest operating campaign. In recent years, postal disruptions have prompted a major shift towards digital fundraising and transitioning donors online. “We’ve noticed, thankfully, that the transition to a more digital-focused campaign has actually been really easy,” shared Ashley. “We have spent a lot of time building ad campaigns and online education for our donors so that they are aware that we can accept donations via our website and via CanadaHelps.” In the face of postal disruptions last year, this education helped ensure fundraising did not dip. “No growth per se in the campaign, but everything stayed exactly the same as the year prior, which was really gratifying for us. So that means that this year we can continue focusing on online donations,” shared Ashley.

💡 Community & Corporate Partnerships: PEIHS works closely with local businesses and community partners. A recent partnership with Hallmark Gold Crown saw them host a drive-in movie fundraiser, with tickets sold online and tracked through CanadaHelps’ event tools. Ashley shared that they have “a couple of partners that run fundraisers on our behalf each year. We’re able to create either peer-to-peer donation pages for them or a bespoke donation form for their use on CanadaHelps. And that’s been really great for us both on the front end because we can create something using their branding, design and copy, but all on one platform.”

💡 Grants & Major Gifts: Major gifts and grants play an essential role as well, particularly in funding innovative programs and capital projects. This is critical for sustaining programs like Safe Haven, which provides temporary emergency housing for pets whose owners face hospitalization, incarceration, or crisis.

💡 Capital Campaign: An ongoing fundraising campaign for a new facility – a new 18,000 sq. ft. space that will include a full veterinary clinic, expanded capacity, and secure office spaces – has been driven by a mix of community donations, major gifts, and increasingly, gifts of securities. “Capital campaigns don’t really end, and the fundraising need continues. As the only animal shelter on Prince Edward Island, this new facility that we’re in the process of building is desperately needed, and this need has really been heard amongst our community,” emphasized Ashley.

💡 Securities Gifts: One of the biggest shifts in recent times has come through gifts of securities, which have become a cornerstone of the capital campaign outlined above. By educating donors on the benefits of securities donations and clearly outlining the process of donating gifts of securities via CanadaHelps, PEIHS has unlocked larger and more impactful contributions.

Digital Fundraising with CanadaHelps tools

PEI Humane Society has used CanadaHelps tools and the platform to modernize and streamline fundraising, improve donor engagement, and introduce new giving avenues.

1. Customizable Donation Form (CDF) ✅

2. Event Pages & Donor Data ✅

3. Securities Donation Processing ✅

CanadaHelps’ securities donation processing has proved advantageous. Many of PEIHS’s capital campaign donors have embraced this method. Being able to provide a simple, donor-friendly process through CanadaHelps has been crucial for the charity. 

4. Automated Tax Receipts & Thank-Yous ✅

With CanadaHelps, PEIHS can automatically send CRA-compliant tax receipts and thank-you messages for every donation made. This has streamlined a previously manual process and ensured that donors receive prompt acknowledgment.

Ashley noted that this has been a meaningful improvement for the team. This level of automation and support allows staff to focus on fundraising and donor engagement rather than administrative tasks.

5. Ease of Onboarding & Use ✅

This has been especially important for PEIHS’s team, and having a platform that everyone could adopt quickly was critical. The transition to using CanadaHelps’ purpose-built system was smooth, enabling them to centralize their fundraising and data without adding administrative strain.

“We’ve really enjoyed the CanadaHelps process from start to finish. I’ve been lucky I got to be here for pretty much the whole process. Not the original implementation 10 years ago, but I’ve been here almost five years now, and it’s been great,” shared Ashley.

6. Powerful Data & Reporting ✅

CanadaHelps has improved how PEIHS tracks, understands, and acts on donor data. Events and donation form data have been particularly useful.

For example, after the Hallmark event, the team used the attendee list to segment and re-engage participants for future campaigns. CanadaHelps’ custom data exports help the charity track giving patterns, analyze campaign performance, and identify major gift prospects. These insights have informed campaign timing, donor segmentation, and growth strategies.

Results from Using CanadaHelps

Since deepening their use of CanadaHelps tools in 2022, PEIHS has seen strong fundraising growth across multiple areas:

1. Growth in Donations 

With CanadaHelps powering its campaigns, PEIHS has seen steady year-over-year growth in total revenue and donor numbers.

They have seen a ~28% increase in total funds raised in the past two fiscal years via CanadaHelps. Securities donations – an 80% increase – have also played a major role in adding new revenue streams. These contributions are outside of the revenue listed in the YoY increase and were major boosts to PEIHS’ revenue.

2. Growth in Monthly Donors

PEI Humane Society appreciates the donation form features that enable it to leverage monthly donations. The organization has seen a 25% increase in monthly donors in the last two years. This steady rise in monthly contributors provides reliable funding and support for long-term planning.

With Smart Sums, for instance, Ashley shared that they “definitely see a real increase in the amount that folks are willing to give when the options available to them.”

3. Increase in New Donor Acquisition

PEIHS has seen a 151% increase in new donor acquisition year-to-date. This rapid growth is a result of new donors acquired through Events and campaigns hosted on CanadaHelps, which account for 48% YTD fundraising efforts. Events have introduced the organization to new audiences via the attendee data from events feeding into future outreach strategies.

“For instance, I know that a donor Jane came to us to watch the Hallmark Channel movies. She bought raffle tickets, she bought popcorn at the event, and brought two other people with her. I have all of that information captured, and information on two new potential donors,” shared Ashley.

4. Higher Conversion with Embedded Forms 

Embedding donation forms directly on their website has made the giving process simpler and more seamless for donors. Supporters can contribute without leaving the site, which improves conversion rates and reduces the likelihood of abandoned donations, especially during high-traffic periods like end-of-year giving.

In addition, PEIHS saves 0.25% in transaction fees for every donation made through its website by using embedded forms.

5. Improved Stewardship & Donor Engagement

With automated tax receipts and thank-yous, and clear reports, PEI Humane Society has been able to personalize communications and maintain stronger relationships with supporters. These tools have supported their shift toward more targeted and digital-first engagement.

“We’d love to be able to do more targeted, digital email campaigns – creating pipelines and segmenting donors right within the platform. That’s the future for us,” shared Ashley.

Why PEIHS Recommends CanadaHelps

For PEI Humane Society, CanadaHelps combines simplicity, flexibility, and trusted support. The platform enables them to meet donors where they are, whether that’s through securities, monthly giving, events, or traditional online donations. It gives their team the tools to track, analyze, and grow their impact efficiently.

“Everything about the program is easy – the transition, onboarding, and day-to-day use. And if I ever have a question, I can pick up the phone and talk to someone at the help center. That support has been wonderful,” shared Ashley.

Through strategic fundraising, community engagement, and their partnership with CanadaHelps, PEIHS is building a sustainable foundation for decades of impact – one that benefits not only animals but the people who love them.

Community Impact

PEI Humane Society plays a critical role in the community beyond its sheltering services. The organization delivers education programs, distributes pet food to families in need, and provides temporary emergency housing for animals.

During the pandemic, PEIHS launched a Pet Pantry program, distributing donated pet food and supplies through community fridges across the province. This helped families keep their pets during financially difficult times and reduced the number of animals surrendered for economic reasons.

Their Safe Haven program offers temporary housing for pets whose owners are hospitalized, incarcerated, or in crisis. By offering short-term shelter, PEIHS helps people retain custody of their animals, often removing a major barrier to seeking critical health or social services.

“For a lot of these folks, their pets were becoming a barrier to their success. They were choosing not to go into treatment or get needed surgery because their pet wouldn’t be waiting for them when they got out. We can change that outcome,” shared Ashley.

Through programs like these, PEIHS not only protects animals but also strengthens families and communities.

 

Looking Ahead

PEI Humane Society is on the brink of a major milestone: the completion of its new 18,000 sq. ft. facility, launched as part of a capital campaign that began in 2018. This new shelter includes a full veterinary clinic, expanded capacity, and secure office spaces – a huge leap from their original 7,400 sq. ft. building built in 1993.

With their new facility set to open soon, PEIHS is gearing up for a new chapter of expanded services and community impact. PEI Humane Society continues to be extremely committed to its cause. Their goals include:

– Growing their monthly donor base through digital-first campaigns

– Continuing to educate donors on securities giving

– Building targeted email pipelines and donor segmentation using their donor data

– Scaling community events and partnerships across the province

➡️ Meet the Team

Ashley Travis, Development & Communications Coordinator

For more than four and a half years, she has proudly worked with the PEI Humane Society, Prince Edward Island’s only animal shelter, where she now serves as Development and Communications Coordinator. Her passion for animal welfare drives her daily work, connecting people and pets through meaningful community engagement and fundraising initiatives, both digital and in-person.

A lifelong believer in the value of using your voice for good, Ashley credits her writing and performance background for giving her the confidence and creativity to thrive in the non-profit sector. At home, she shares her life with a small menagerie of rescue animals – two dogs, a cat, and a snake – who remind her every day why she does what she does.

“We have tremendous needs at this organization, be it in terms of the medical costs that we incur, the supplies we need, or being able to pay all the hardworking people who work here. It’s not always the easiest sector to be in, and yet these people choose to come to work every day and choose to work with us. Getting to see the impact we are making in the animals’ lives and in the community makes this all worth it.” – Ashley