Celebrate the birthday of a child who loves animals at our Robins-Starr Humane Center! We have three different party options to choose from for children big, small and grown-up animal lovers who are young at heart.

When school is out, camp is in session! These full-day camps are the perfect way for kids in third to fifth grade to spend a school holiday — learning, playing and celebrating the season alongside shelter pets.

Next up on the calendar*: November 3 and 4, December 22, 23, 29 and 30, January 2
Registration coming soon!

*If a program does not meet the minimum enrollment required, we reserve the right to cancel the session. In such cases, we will notify registered participants and offer the option to transfer to another session or receive a full refund.

Every summer we offer fun and educational week-long half-day and full-day camps for children in grades 1 through 9. Camp registration for the 2026 season will begin in February.

Animal Brigade is for middle school students (grades 6 through 8) to learn more about their four-legged friends and how to help them through volunteer projects and humane education. Applications are now closed for the Fall 2025 session and will reopen mid-December for Spring 2026.

We welcome children of all ages to visit our Robins-Starr Humane Center and read to pets in our adoption lobby. Reading to shelter pets is a unique way to provide interaction and enrichment to the dogs and cats (and occasional bunnies) waiting to find their new families. Bring a book or select one from our collection. For the reader, practicing reading skills with our animals increases motivation to read, develops self-confidence and improves fluency. Our pets provide an unbiased audience and welcome all reading skill levels. This experience also helps to foster compassion and involvement in animals’ lives and makes reading more fun!

Tales for Tails is available whenever our adoption center is open. We welcome children to read to our pets who are currently awaiting adoption. Please check in with our front desk upon arrival and an adoption counselor can point you toward our book collection and appropriate pets to visit. 

Repeat visitors will earn a special treat from the Richmond SPCA. Pick up your “boop the snoot” bookmark from our adoption desk, and on your fifth visit, you can redeem it for a prize.

Registration is now open for fall dates of our Paws to Play program! Children ages 18 months to 4 years, along with an adult, can join us in the Richmond SPCA’s Exploratorium for pet-themed stories, crafts, movement activities and heartwarming interactions with shelter animals. Space is limited to eight participants.

Please contact our manager of humane education to schedule a tour for your school, scout or other group.

Projects for Kids that Help our Pets
Children can help the animals in our care by organizing a donation drive for the items on our wish list or by completing one of our suggested craft projects. Contact us to learn more about crafts that can help our pets.

Download Richmond SPCA Coloring Pages
Have fun coloring a rotating collection of sheets featuring pets in our care, past and present, and even some of our staff members’ pets. Many designs are by Richmond SPCA team members.