Internships
We offer a variety of internships for students seeking hands-on learning opportunities in animal care, humane education, fundraising, and more.
Applications are now OPEN for Fall Semester (September-December). Deadline to submit: Friday, August 21 at 5pm.
Which internship is right for you?
Explore each program to decide where you’ll make a difference. →
Adoptions & Animal Care
Adoptions & Animal Care Internships provide the opportunity to learn the Lexington Humane Society adoption process and the foundations of outstanding animal care in a shelter environment. Adoptions internships are particularly suited to those looking to enter the field of shelter management. This position works any day of the week, including weekends.
What You’ll Do:
- Work closely with the Adoptions Supervisor and Animal Care Supervisor
- Work closely with the Adoptions team to help facilitate adoptions
- Interact with the public to provide information and guide them through the adoption process
- Keep animals on our Adoptions floor up-to-date on vaccinations and photos
- Assist with Check-Me-Out and Henry House programs
- Work closely with kennel staff to provide enrichment to animals on our Adoptions floor
- Assist with daily chores including dishes, laundry, and cleaning of kennels and common areas
What You’ll Bring to the Internship:
- Eagerness to work with a diverse population of people and animals
- High comfort level with bodily fluids, cleaning up animal waste, use of strong cleaning agents, and giving injections
- Animal handling experience (including, but not limited to, dogs and cats of all breeds and sizes)
- Ability to commit to 3+ months
- Ability to commit to 10+ hours per week
Events & Marketing
Event and Marketing Internships offer the opportunity to help with the planning and execution of key fundraising and community events for the Lexington Humane Society. Interns will gain valuable experience in event management, social media marketing, volunteer management, and more. This position primarily works Monday – Friday. Some weekend/evening hours during events may also be required.
What You’ll Do:
- Work closely with the Community Engagement Supervisor to meet the goals of LHS events
- Assist with community outreach related to special and community events
- Work closely with the Digital Content Coordinator to generate photography and video content for social media
- Assist the Marketing Manager with marketing campaigns and initiatives
- Other duties and event support as needed
What You’ll Bring to the Internship:
- Experience with Canva and ability to learn new software and programs
- Some animal handling experience preferred
- Strong Communication and customer service skills
- Organizational skills and the ability to meet deadlines
- Positive attitude and willingness to learn
- Creative thinking skills to brainstorm and execute new ideas
- Ability to commit to 3+ months
- Ability to commit to 10+ hours per week
- Ability to bend, stoop, squat, reach, and push moderately heavy objects
Foster Care (Only Available in Summer Semester)
As an intern, you will have the opportunity to work alongside the small but mighty Foster Care team, where creativity makes a big impact. You’ll gain valuable experience in coordinating a home-based sheltering model through engagement with members of the public, maintaining client relationships, social media marketing, and program recruitment. This internship is particularly useful for students seeking a career in healthcare communications, social work, or medical administration.
*PLEASE NOTE: Our Foster Care Internship is only available in the Summer Semester.
What You’ll Do:
- Work closely with the Foster Team to ensure the success of foster parents
- Provide coaching for foster parents and lead foster training sessions
- Write two social media posts a week to promote animals in foster care
- Work the Foster Care table at LHS events to provide information to the public
- Partner with veterinary staff to coordinate medical care for foster animals
- Partner with the Foster Care Manager on enrichment strategies to ensure excellent foster animal health and behavior
What You’ll Bring To The Internship:
- Strong communication skills
- Ability to learn new software and processes
- High comfort level with bodily fluids, cleaning up animal waste, use of strong cleaning agents, and giving injections after receiving training
- Ability to commit to intern schedule, 10+ hours per week, including some weekends
- Ability to bend, stoop, squat, reach, and push moderately heavy objects
- Basic animal-handling experience
Fundraising
As a Fundraising intern, you will have the opportunity to work alongside the Donor Coordinator, where data entry and accounting makes a tangible impact. You’ll gain valuable experience in donor relations, stewardship, nonprofit fundraising operations, donation processing and reconciliation, CRM/database management, data entry & financial tracking, appeal coding/mapping, professional donor communications, administrative organizational skills and collaboration within a development/fundraising team. This internship is particularly useful for students seeking a career in fundraising, development, donor relations, business administration, accounting, nonprofit finance support, philanthropy or CRM administration.
What You’ll Do:
- Work closely with the Donor Coordinator to support daily fundraising operations
- Assist with processing and tracking mail-in donations
- Help determine and organize donation appeals and designated funds
- Create and maintain Google Sheets to accurately map donations and enter them into the donor CRM
- Reconcile online donations to ensure gifts are properly allocated to the correct appeals and funds
- Send donor acknowledgements through thank-you letters, emails, and personalized video messages
What You’ll Bring to the Internship:
- Strong written and verbal communication skills
- Willingness to learn new software systems and internal processes
- Proficiency with Excel, Google Sheets, and Microsoft Office products
- Ability to commit to the August–December internship schedule
- Strong attention to detail and organizational skills
- Ability to take direction, work collaboratively, and ask thoughtful questions
Humane Education
As an intern, you will have the opportunity to work alongside the Community Engagement Supervisor to support our Humane Education program. This role offers hands on experience in youth education, program facilitation, and community outreach, all while promoting compassion and responsible pet ownership. You’ll play a key role in creating a fun, safe, and engaging environment for campers while gaining valuable experience in education, nonprofit programming, and animal welfare. This internship is particularly beneficial for students pursuing careers in education, nonprofit management, social work, or community outreach.
What You’ll Do:
• Assist in planning and facilitating daily summer camp activities, including crafts, games, and animal-focused educational lessons
• Support humane education programming by helping teach topics such as animal care, pet responsibility, and shelter careers
• Supervise and actively engage campers to ensure a safe, inclusive, and positive camp experience
• Assist with animal interactions, ensuring proper handling protocols and modeling appropriate behavior around animals
• Help manage daily camp logistics including set-up, clean-up, and supply organization
• Support camper check-in/check-out processes and assist with parent/guardian communication as needed
• Prepare and organize educational materials, craft supplies, and activity kits
• Capture photos and assist with documenting camp activities for marketing and social media use
• Provide general administrative and program support to the Community Engagement team
What You’ll Bring To The Internship:
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, especially when working with children
• Enthusiasm for education, animal welfare, and community engagement
• Ability to take direction and adapt in a fast-paced, interactive environment
• Comfort working both independently and as part of a team
• Ability to commit to a May through August schedule, 10+ hours per week
• Ability to bend, stoop, squat, reach, and lift moderately heavy objects as part of camp set-up and activities
• Comfort working around animals and following safety and sanitation protocols
• Experience working with children or in educational settings is a plus
Medical Care & Treatment
Lexington Humane Society Medical Care & Treatment Internships offer an in-depth look into the world of shelter medicine. Our interns shadow and assist our Medical team in providing exceptional daily care to all of the animals in our facility. This position works any day of the week, including weekends, and is best suited for those looking to enter the veterinary field.
What You’ll Do:
- Work closely with the Medical Supervisor and Staff Veterinarian of Animal Welfare
- Work closely with a team of Veterinary Assistants
- Administer vaccines, fluids, and daily medications to animals in our shelter
- Restrain animals for vet treatments
- Sanitize animal housing
- Provide placement and enrichment to animals in our care
- Use computer software to update charts and input medical information
What You’ll Bring to the Internship:
- Commitment to safety and a superior level of animal care
- Ability to work both independently and in a team environment
- High comfort level with bodily fluids, cleaning up animal waste, use of strong cleaning agents, and giving injections
- Ability to restrain animals for vet treatments
- Ability to bend, stoop, squat, reach, sit at a desk, stand for long periods of time, move at a fast pace, push moderately heavy objects, and lift 60+ lbs
- Ability to commit to 4+ months
- Ability to commit to 20+ hours per week, including weekends
- Ability to work 5+ hour shifts
Public Programs
As a Public Programs intern, you will have the opportunity to work alongside the Volunteer Specialist and the Administrative Specialist to advance the Lexington Humane Society Pet Food Pantry. This role offers hands-on experience with program development, database management, community outreach and public communication, customer service, administrative organizational skills, and collaboration within a development/fundraising team. This internship is particularly useful for students seeking a career in nonprofit management, animal welfare administration, public services, social work, or community outreach.
What You’ll Do:
- Greet visitors at the LHS Administration building and assist with pet food distribution
- Digitize existing Pet Food Pantry records and develop an improved system for tracking PFP use
- Research similar programs and make recommendations for updated standard operating procedures (SOP’s)
- Network with other organizations in Lexington to find additional opportunities for program development
- Update resource guides and other public-facing documents
- Receive and redirect phone calls on the LHS main line
What You’ll Bring to the Internship:
- Ability to commit to the August–December internship schedule
- Proficiency with Excel, Google Sheets, and Microsoft Office products
- Strong attention to detail and organizational skills
- Strong interpersonal communication skills and willingness to handle difficult conversations with members of the public
- Ability to take direction, work collaboratively, and ask thoughtful questions