More Visibility for Your Adoptable Dogs: Why Your Shelter Should Be on Snifr
If you work or volunteer at an animal shelter or rescue association, you know the routine well: you take the photos, write each dog's story, post it on Instagram and Facebook… and a few hours later the post has vanished from the feed. Meanwhile, the perfect family for that dog could be living ten minutes from the shelter without ever knowing the dog exists.
In this article we explain how Snifr gives your adoptable dogs a kind of visibility social media can't, why Snifr's audience is exactly the one you're looking for, and how to get started for free, with no fees, no commissions and no lock-in.
Sometimes their future family is ten minutes away. They just need to see them.
The problem with posting adoptable dogs only on social media
Social media has helped shelters enormously, but it has limits anyone who manages it knows all too well:
- Everything expires. A post lives for a few hours and a story for a day. To reach people again you have to post again and again.
- The algorithm decides. Not even all your followers see what you post — only some of them, and fewer every time unless you pay to promote it.
- The audience is scattered. People follow you from all over the country (and abroad), but adoption is usually local: adopters need to be able to visit the dog, meet them and take them home.
- Messages get lost. Comments, DMs, emails, WhatsApp… every interested person arrives through a different door and it's hard to keep track.
None of this is the shelters' fault: it's how social networks work. That's why it makes sense to add a channel built only for dogs and dog people.
What Snifr is and why its audience is the one you need
Snifr is an app for people with dogs: they track their walks, discover parks and dog-friendly places, meet other dogs in their neighbourhood, arrange walks together and complete challenges. In other words, it's used by people who:
- Already have a dog and know what caring for one involves.
- Walk every day around their neighbourhood, often near your shelter.
- Open the app daily, not once a year when they decide to adopt.
- And, in many cases, are thinking about a second dog or know someone who is looking for one.
It's hard to find a better audience for responsible adoption: experienced people who live nearby and already organise their lives around a dog.
The visibility Snifr gives your dogs
This is where the real difference lies. On Snifr your dogs aren't just another post scrolling down a feed: they have three permanent shop windows inside the app.
1. The adoption deck: one dog, the whole screen
In the Adoptions section, each dog appears full screen, with their photos, age, breed and personality. People looking to adopt in your area see them one by one and mark the ones they like. You're not competing with memes, ads or cooking videos: when someone sees your dog, all they see is your dog.
2. The map: your shelter, always in sight
Your shelter has its own pin on the Snifr map, with a dedicated “Shelters” layer. People walking nearby know you're there, open your profile and discover every dog looking for a home.
3. Your profile: your story and your achievements
Each shelter has its own profile with logo, description, phone, website and social media, plus the list of available dogs. Dogs that have already found a home stay on your profile with an adoption counter, so everyone can see what you achieve. That builds trust and encourages people who are still on the fence.
A social media post lasts a few hours. A dog on Snifr stays visible until the day they go home.
From “I'm interested” to the sofa: direct, organised contact
When someone is interested in one of your dogs, a direct chat with the shelter opens inside the app, linked to that specific dog. And you're notified instantly:
- A push notification and an email for every new interested person and every message.
- Each conversation is tied to the dog they're interested in: no more “sorry, which dog were you asking about?”.
- You decide who to move forward with. Snifr makes the introduction; the adoption process, interviews and conditions remain yours.
You can also manage it as a team, from the app or from the shelter web portal, where you'll find your dogs, the interested people, the chats and your adoption metrics. Mark each dog as available, reserved or adopted with a single tap.
All of this, free. Really.
Posting on Snifr is and will remain free for shelters:
| Snifr for shelters | |
|---|---|
| Sign-up and own profile | Free |
| Fees | None |
| Commission per adoption | None |
| Lock-in | None |
And a bonus: if you like, we'll interview your shelter and publish it on Snifr's social media, to give even more visibility to your work and to the dogs looking for a home.
How to get started in an afternoon
- Request access through the shelters form and you'll instantly receive the link to create your profile.
- Set up your profile: logo, description and contact details. We review it and publish it (we'll ask for the association's tax ID and registration number, so only real shelters are on Snifr).
- Upload your dogs, each with their photos and details.
- Reply to interested people and follow your usual adoption process.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to be on Snifr as a shelter?
Nothing. No fees, no adoption commissions and no lock-in.
Who can see our dogs?
People who use Snifr, starting with those who live near you: in the adoption deck, on the map and on your profile.
Does Snifr manage the adoptions?
No. Snifr connects you with interested people; interviews, contracts and adoption conditions are up to you, as always.
Can several volunteers manage the account?
Yes. Several people can manage the shelter from the app or from the web portal.
What about dogs that have already been adopted?
They stay on your profile marked as adopted and add to your counter. They're your best calling card.
Every dog deserves a home
Your dogs already have their story. Let the people who walk near you every day see it.
