Help a Buddy Fund

05/23/2026

Did you know that year-round, Help a Buddy Fund will provide small emergency donations to help animals in care of rescues across Alberta?

While our larger financial grants are only gifted once per year, our Bella Bucks Emergency Donation Program helps our rescue heroes deal with sudden medical bills on a more immediate basis. Spread the word!

The application is quick and easy, and takes approximately 15 minutes to fill out.

www.helpabuddyfund.org/bellabucks

05/19/2026

The new bylaws in the City of Edmonton come into effect today. If you live within Alberta's capital city, take some time to familiarize yourself with the updates.

New Animal Care & Control Bylaw – Effective May 19 🐶

The updated Animal Care and Control Bylaw provides better support for responsible pet ownership.

We’re also:
🐾 Lowering licensing fees for seniors and those on income assistance.
🐾 Waiving licence fees for local not-for-profit rescue organizations.
🐾 Keeping household pet limits steady.
🐾 Implementing stricter rules for dog attacks

These changes help ensure every pet in YEG has a safe place to call home. Learn how the new bylaw affects you at edmonton.ca/AnimalBylaw

05/08/2026

This weekend, let us celebrate mothers in all forms. To two legged mothers, four legged mothers, and winged mothers, we honour you!

For many animals, the journey to motherhood is met with suffering, and we ask our community to consider an act of kindness towards one of the many non-human mothers who showed love to their babies at one point in time. If you cannot donate to a rescue today, we encourage you to make a conscious choice about your impact on animal welfare. Try a plant-based meal, volunteer for a fundraising event (or attend to support it), or visit one of the farm sanctuaries in Alberta to learn more - these are just some of the ways you can make a difference.

04/30/2026

Following our annual general meeting last week, we are incredibly grateful to report that we have awarded our annual general grant, aimed to support rescues with the costs of ongoing care of animals kept in care for one year or longer, to Hope Lives Here Animal Rescue Society

While we received an abundance of applications for our grants this year and wish we could support more than just one deserving rescue, Pearl's story was selected as this year's recipient for our 2025 funds. At only 7 weeks of age, Pearl was brought into the rescue and discovered to have suffered blunt force trauma that left her with broken ribs and respiratory complications. Pearl has a long journey ahead of her, and the rescue is waiting for her to become strong enough to receive a reconstructive surgery that will be life-changing. Afterwards, Pearl will need to be medically cleared after months-long recovery. The surgery is costly and our annual grant has only been able to provide funding for approximately half the cost. If you'd like to support Pearl further, we encourage considering making a donation to Hope Lives Here.

04/25/2026

Following our annual general meeting last week, we are incredibly grateful to report that we have awarded our annual Bella Bucks grant, aimed to support rescues with the costs of emergency veterinary care, to Next Chapter Animal Rescue League

While we received an abundance of applications for our grants this year and wish we could support more than just one deserving rescue, Wally's story was selected as this year's recipient for our 2025 funds. At only 4 months of age, Wally was left tied at a dump where the rope used to tie him caused a leg injury so severe, an emergency amputation was required. Today, Wally is thriving in his foster home and learning to navigate life as a tripod. We are so incredibly grateful that with the support Help a Buddy Fund has received over the past year, we are able to be a positive part of dogs like Wally's healing journey.

04/18/2026

While we can't give everything, we are pleased that our Bella Bucks Emergency Donation program is in place to help with small amounts of emergency vet bills for cases like Bobby and Sunset. When we received this application, it was hard to say no to offering our support.

Bobby and Sunset came into care with Last Chance Cat Ranch Lethbridge both pregnant and in need of immediate care. Sadly, Sunset lost all three of her babies, and Bobby lost one of four. But in heartwarming updates, you can see the bond that these two cats formed as grieving mothers - Bobby and Sunset together became joint mothers for Bobby's remaining three kittens.

We strongly encourage you to consider a donation to this amazing rescue, and follow along Bobby and Sunset's journey as these two cats learn what safety and love looks like (the kittens are growing strong and are the cutest floofs!)

04/11/2026

Our Bella Bucks Emergency Fund exists to help animals like Domino. While we couldn't fund all of this pup's vet care, we know the money we have set aside for cases like this have made a difference in helping rescues support animals in high-stress situations.

If you'd like to help Domino even more, consider a donation to Heart Mountain Rescue

And if you'd like to see more emergency situations alleviated by Help a Buddy Fund, consider making a designated donation to 'Bella Bucks' today.

You can read more about our small donation program that helps animals year round here: https://www.helpabuddyfund.org/bellabucks.html #/

04/04/2026

This legislation would be a positive change in Alberta's animal rescue community.

From the article:

Alberta is proposing to increase maximum penalties for animal abuse from $20,000 to $250,000 and introduce potential jail time of up to 12 months under legislation tabled Monday.

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The legislation would allow Alberta to enforce animal-related prohibition orders issued in other provinces and territories, addressing a gap where those orders could not previously be enforced in Alberta.

“We'll be able to enforce that order right here in our province… people won't be able to evade these orders and potentially re offend in our province,” Sigurdson said.

He said Alberta would be the first province to take that step.

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“More comprehensive definitions of distress and abandonment will better enable peace officers to intervene or remove animals from harmful conditions,” he said.

An Alberta SPCA representative said the current definition of distress is limited to food, water, shelter and veterinary care, but animals have other needs that should be met.

Alberta proposes $250K fines, jail time in animal protection bill.

Alberta is proposing to increase maximum penalties for animal abuse from $20,000 to $250,000 and introduce potential jail time of up to 12 months under legislation tabled Monday.

Full story is up on our DiscoverAirdrie app and website.

Photo credit to: Government of Alberta

03/29/2026

Our annual grant applications close in just a few days, and are open to all Alberta CRA registered charities who support animal rehoming and rehabilitation!

The application process is expected to take approximately one hour, and we encourage applicants to find time to send us your story for why an animal (or two!) in your care deserves funding. Eligible charities must have a minimum of one animal in long-term care (one year or longer) within their guardianship to qualify for both grant streams offered.

Applications are open until March 31, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Recipients will be selected in April.

Visit helpabuddyfund.org/annualgrants-2026 for more information, a full list of eligibility requirements, and to apply for much-needed funding!

03/21/2026

Our Annual General Meeting is April 16th!
Join us virtually on April 16 at 6:30pm

All voting members are invited to the AGM, the event that our charity uses to distribute our annual grant funding to a deserving Albertan animal welfare group in need of financial relief. To be a voting member, you must be an active volunteer of Help a Buddy Fund, or subscribe to an annual paid membership.

To learn more about the AGM, contact us, or fill out a volunteer or membership application before March 31st at www.helpabuddyfund.org/volunteer to receive your invitation to the AGM.

We are also electing new Board members! If you have skills for Board leadership, we want you to apply to join our team! We can be contacted via email at [email protected] if you would like to know more about the available Board positions. Please indicate your interest before March 31st.