Sign up now to show your support for animals that have nowhere safe and comfortable to sleep.
Learn all about pets and how to become a great pet owner while fundraising for animals in need.
Sleep somewhere safe, other than your bed to complete the challenge on any night between April 12th - 27th 2024.
We want you to Sleep Out For Strays. Give up your own bed on any night between April 12th to 27th to acknowledge animals that don't have a safe place to sleep. Choose somewhere safe, sleep out with friends and family in your lounge room or in a tent in your backyard.
Sleep Out for Strays is FREE to register.
On any night between April 12th and April 27th, we’re asking you to give up your own comfy bed and Sleep Out for Strays. We want you to play animal games, watch animal movies and share what you've learned about animals from our daily animal lessons.
Get your family, friends and neighbours to sponsor you and fundraise to support animals in need across the ACT.
RSPCA ACT's Sleep Out for Strays is an opportunity for children to learn about animals and how to best look after their pets. Together we can inspire a generation of terrific pet owners.
You should feel proud to know you’re raising money for animals in need, but we have some great incentives for you too as you raise funds during your Sleep Out for Strays.
$100 – Raise $100 and you’ll receive a special Sleep our for Strays eye mask.
$250 – Raise $250 and receive your own personalised video from the RSPCA ACT team featuring the animals in our care who you're helping.
$500 – Raise $500 and you get to name an animal at RSPCA ACT. It can be any name you like. You will receive a certificate featuring the animal you've named and the story of why they are here. (And you'll be the first to know when they get adopted).
Thanks to people like you who take part in fundraising events like Sleep out for Strays, we can help animals in need. Your hard work allows us to care for all kinds of animals in the ACT like Theodora, Noah and Clementine. You can read their full stories in our Sleep Out for Strays guide.
Theodora
Nobody adopted her because she wouldn’t come out of her hutch to meet them. Theodora was very young, and we wanted to help her. So, every day we visited her.
Sometimes we talked or played and sometimes we just sat with her. We wanted Theodora to see that it was safe to be with people.
Slowly but surely, Theodora learned to trust us and be brave, even though she was still a little bit shy.
One day a family visited and even though Theodora was shy, she came out of her hutch to meet them. The family could see how beautiful she was and adopted her. We were very proud of Theodora and happy that she now has her own new home.
Noah
Poor Noah and his siblings were forced to stay in isolation, like being in a cat hospital, until they were better.
They all went to live with a foster carer where they got used to being in a house and getting good food and clean water.
Even though Noah and his siblings used to be homeless, they were very friendly cats who loved being around people.
They were adopted and are all very healthy and happy in their own home.
Clementine
We were very happy that Clementine was lucky enough to not have any serious injuries!
She was a sweet and lovely dog who stayed with us while she recovered and was adopted into a loving home.
When animals are homeless it’s easy for them to have accidents and get hurt.
Fortunately for Clementine and her owners, we helped her get better and she is now safe and happy.
12 Registered
It's all about helping children to learn about animals including how to care for their own pets while fundraising to help animals in need in the ACT.
Have any questions? Contact # or visit our FAQ’s.
Tips for fundraising?
Here are RSPCA ACT’s top fundraising tips:
- Ask your family and friends to donate to your fundraiser.
- Host a bake sale. You can bake treats for people or for pets.
- Hold a toy/garage sale.
- Ask your parents to share your fundraiser on their social media channels.
- Do chores and jobs around the house to make money.
- Get your friends involved as a team and fundraise together.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)
What is Sleep Out for Strays? (SOS)
SOS is a fundraising challenge where individuals give up their bed for a night and sleep somewhere else, safe (eg. loungeroom, backyard) acknowledging the thousand's of animals in need of a safe place to sleep and call home.
During the two week challenge there will be daily activities including drawing competitions, visits to our shelter and more!
Are there incentives for taking place in SOS?
Yes! Incentives vary depending on how much money is raised by an individual or group. These include RSPCA ACT Eye Masks, personalised video messages from RSPCA ACT staff,. certificates and naming rights for animals arriving at our shelter.
When is Sleep Out for Strays?
SOS will be held during the summer school holidays during a two week window starting on the 12th of April 2024 and concluding on the 27th of April 2024. Online education sessions and shelter visits will occur over the fortnight however participants only need to do the sleepover challenge for one night.
What is the age of participation in Sleep Out for Strays?
We encourage all ages to participate in this challenge, however SOS educational material is designed for school aged children with parental supervision.
I’m an adult, can I still take part?
Yes. Adults are welcome to take part of the challenge at home and encouraged to help with fundraising. Please note that activities have been created for children.
What does the fundraising go towards?
All money raised from SOS goes directly toward the operational costs of housing and caring for the animals at RSPCA ACT.
Is there a fundraising minimum?
We encourage you to raise as much as you are comnfortable raising. This could be $10 or $250! Every cent makes a difference!
Can I participate if I live outside of the ACT?Sleep Out For Strays in an initiative created by RSPCA ACT to educate as many children as possible in our community on responsible pet owners and animal welfare.
You must live within the ACT or surrounding towns of postcodes 2620 or 2621 to participate.
Terms and Conditions
This section sets out the terms that apply for your participation in Sleep Out for Strays, your use of the SOS* website, resources (printed and digital) and other SOS materials. Your registration in SOS indicates that you agree with these terms and conditions. By conducting your fundraising activity/event you agree to comply with these terms and conditions in a manner that upholds RSPCA ACT’s integrity, professionalism and values.
- Parental Consent – all terms and conditions apply to parent or guardians of registered SOS participants under 18. Any person under the age of 16 years participating in SOS must be appropriately supervised by an adult.
- Your must live within the ACT, or surrounding towns of 2620 or 2621 to participate in SOS.
- Your Information – SOS collects personal information as part of its fundraising activities, to assist us in complying with our legal and regulatory obligations and for other related purposes. By providing any personal information to us and / or being involved in our fundraising activities you consent to the collection of personal information and the use and disclosure of that information in the manner set out in our privacy policy. Please refer to the privacy policy on our website at https://www.rspca-act.org.au/privacy-policy
Failure to provide personal information may result in SOS being unable to provide you with certain information, incentives and prizes. You may opt out of receiving communications at any time by contacting us via email, phone or mail.
- Your Privacy – SOS staff and volunteers understand and respect your right to Privacy and the confidentiality and security of personal information provided by You. SOS will take all reasonable steps to ensure that your personal information is protected from misuse, loss, interference and unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.
- Your fundraising – the proceeds from your fundraising will be allocated to the RSPCA ACT to make a direct impact to the animals in our care.
- Content created by SOS – SOS owns or licenses from third parties all the trademarks, copyright and other intellectual property that exists in the Services. You must not copy or reproduce in any form any of the graphics, logos or other materials from our Services unless you have our specific permission. For the avoidance of doubt, you have our permission to download material from the Resources page on our website, subject to the restrictions noted on that page.
- Content posted by you- Any content that you post to our Services (e.g. photos, videos and comments) is your responsibility, and you must make sure that you have the necessary rights to post that content (e.g. by obtaining permission of copyright owners if necessary or by obtaining permission to use personal information of third parties). By posting any content, you also give SOS a non-exclusive, transferable, royalty-free worldwide right to use and reproduce that content.
- Resources SOS provides you – SOS takes great care with its Services and we endeavour to keep them accurate, error-free, and free of any offensive material. However, you use the site at your own risk and SOS will not be liable for any costs or losses you incur through your use of our Services. Whilst we may include on our Services links to third party websites or resources, SOS is not responsible for such third parties and you use those websites or resources at your own risk.
- Fundraising events or activities– If you choose to host or organise a fundraising event or activity (Event) as part of your SOS campaign, you accept that you are responsible for the organization and running of the Event, which includes acquiring any necessary permits, permissions and/or insurance, and complying with all legal requirements, required to hold said Event. There may be risks and dangers inherent to an Event, and by choosing to host it you understand and accept that SOS will not have any liability in relation to any injury, damage or loss incurred in connection with your Event.
- Campaign period – The SOS campaign opens in April of 2024 and will run for two weeks.
- Fundraisers must send the event proceeds to RSPCA ACT within 14 days of the conclusion of the event.
