Closure Notice

The Buddy Center, Harmony Equine Center, Leslie A. Malone Center, and the San Luis Valley Animal Center will be closed Wed., Nov. 4, 2026.

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Community Service

Close-up of a scruffy gray and tan dog with brown eyes and open mouth, framed in a circular turquoise border

Community Service

About Community Service

Our community service program is designed for individuals who are at least 16 years of age looking to complete court-ordered community service hours at the Leslie A Malone Center in Denver. Since community service volunteers go through an abbreviated training process, you will have no direct interaction with the pets at our shelters; volunteer tasks include custodial duties, such as cleaning and laundry. If you are interested in a longer commitment with animal interaction, please apply to be a General Volunteer.

The onboarding process to become a community service volunteer can take up to several weeks. Please note that we are not able to accommodate a quicker turnaround time for completing hours.

Community Service Requirements

  • Physical Requirements – Community service volunteers should be capable of bending, scooping, lifting, and standing for extended periods of time.
  • Time Commitment – The community service program accepts court-ordered volunteers committed to serving at least 24 hours of service. If you require fewer hours for the court, you must still complete our minimum requirement. Failure to complete at least 24 hours of service will be reflected on any court paperwork.
  • Acceptable Charges – We ONLY accept the following court-ordered charges: Gambling, Truancy, MIP (alcohol, tobacco or marijuana), DUI (alcohol), DWAI (alcohol), Traffic Violations, Petty Theft, Misdemeanor Criminal Mischief (misdemeanor ONLY) and Marijuana charges.

Community Service FAQ

  • If you would like to complete court-ordered community service hours at Humane Colorado, complete the application below to begin the process.
  • We are no longer accepting applications for school-required community service hours.
  • If you are a student who is 16-17 years old looking to complete service hours for school, visit our Summer Teen Program page to learn more.
  • If you are a student who is 12-15 years old, visit our Humane Education page to learn more. Please note: These programs are pre-scheduled and do have a fee associated.
  • If your hours are due in less than a month you may want to find an alternative program to volunteer with as we are not able to accommodate a quicker turnaround time for completing hours.

Applicant Acceptance

Community Service Process

1. Complete the application.
It may take up to one week to process your application. The $7 application fee covers the costs of administrative processing and background-check fees.

2. Complete a background check.
We will send you a background check once your application has been accepted.

3. Attend an orientation.
Once your background check has cleared you will be invited to attend a community service orientation. Community service orientations are typically held twice a month.

4. Start signing up for shifts.
Within 24 hours of your orientation, you can begin signing up for volunteer shifts through our online volunteer portal.

Humane Colorado reserves the right to deny any application to the community service program for any reason. Even if your charge is listed above, you are not automatically qualified as a participant in the program.

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