General Donations

Companion Animals New Zealand is a leading national animal welfare charity committed to ensuring a good life for our pets in New Zealand.

Companion Animals New Zealand is passionate about transforming New Zealand into a global leader in companion animal welfare. We envision a world where every pet thrives and experiences the Good Life they deserve.

We operate the NZ Companion Animal Register (NZCAR), which helps reunite lost pets with their guardians, and we fund research, education, animal welfare campaigns as well as advocacy work to advance companion animal welfare. This includes initiatives like our free animal behaviour webinar series, subsidised microchipping events, ‘state of the nation’ animal surveys and human behaviour change for enhancing animal welfare programmes.

We deeply appreciate your valuable support. If you are able, please consider making a donation to help us continue our mission of ensuring the wellbeing of NZ's pets. Every contribution, no matter the size, makes a significant difference. 

 

Companion Animals New Zealand is a Charitable Trust, CC27849, and a registered Charity under the Charities Act 2005.


DONATION TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Your Donation Receipts

We value every single dollar we receive and it is a privilege to be entrusted with your generous and thoughtful contributions. When you provide your contact details, we will send you a receipt, typically within two business days of receiving your gift.

Additionally, you may be eligible for a tax rebate on your donation at the end of the financial year. For more information, please visit IRD's donations tax credits page.

Companion Animals NZ Donations Refund Policy

Companion Animals NZ will refund all donations made that are fraudulent due to unauthorised use of a credit card. In all other circumstances, refunds of donations will be at the discretion of Companion Animals NZ, unless in the event of returning funds raised for a specific purpose that has not been fulfilled by Companion Animals NZ as agreed. In assessing whether refunds of donations can be facilitated, we will determine whether the donation in question has already been applied to a charitable purpose or whether it is available to be released back to the donor.

If you have any questions about this policy or wish to seek a refund of a charitable donation you have made, please contact us on accounts@companionanimals.nz.


Donation FAQ

If you can't find the answer you are looking for, please contact our Donor Support team either;  

Call: 0508 LOST PET  (0508 567 873)  

Email:fundraising@companionanimals.nz 

 
 

About your donations

 
  • The best way to donate is through our webform here. Using this system, you can opt make a ‘one-time’ or ‘monthly’ donation, and you get an automated receipt.  

    A monthly donation is a donation that is automatically made from your account.  

    We also can gratefully accept bank transfers, payroll giving and bequests. See below for more on these methods of giving.  

  • Yes, donations to CANZ are tax deductible and you will receive a receipt for this. You can read more about this process on the IRD website here: https://www.ird.govt.nz/income-tax/income-tax-for-individuals/individual-tax-credits/tax-credits-for-donations

  • All funds generously donated to CANZ will be used to support animal welfare programmes to promote positive welfare and responsible animal guardianship.  

    Our main programme work involves creating a Good Life for companion animals, primarily in New Zealand, but we do have international influence. We have a number of programmes that help us achieve our aims, you can read more on our website   

    Donations also enable us to provide funding for helping reduce the number of unwanted pets by supporting desexing campaigns and ensuring that animals are microchipped and registered before they are rehomed. Last year we donated almost $200,000 towards achieving this aim.  

    Your help assists in making our lost & found animal database – the NZ Companion Animal Register – as accessible as possible with a low, lifetime registration fee and 24/7 live, NZ-based, phone support.  

  • Consistent, small gifts can have a profound and lasting impact on animal lives. They provide the stability and resources needed to deliver vital programs that create a Good Life for animals. By committing to regular support, you'll be providing a reliable source of funding that enables effective planning and maximises positive outcomes for animals. 

  • If you have donated via our platform: 

    If you would like to cancel your regular donation this can be managed from the ‘Manage my donations’ button in your first donation email titled ‘Thanks for becoming a regular donor’.  

    If you would like to pause your regular donation this can be managed from the button in your first donation email titled ‘Thanks for becoming a regular donor’.  

    If you are donating via direct credit:  

    You can manage your donation via your bank 

    If you are donating via payroll giving: 

    Talk to your payroll provider  

    If you experience any issues, please contact us at: fundraising@companionanimals.nz 

  • Yes, you can. We cannot accept payments over the phone, but we can email you our bank account details for your donation.  

    Email: fundraising@companionanimals.nz

    Call: 0508 LOST PET (Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm) 

 
 

Payroll giving

 
  • What is payroll giving? 

    In New Zealand, you can ask your employer to deduct donations from your pay and pass them on to approved organisations or charities. This is called payroll giving, you choose the organisation you would like to donate to, how much you want to donate and how often. If you would be so generous to donate via your pay, you will find us under Companion Animals NZ.  

    For every dollar you donate, you get 33.33 cents back as a tax credit.  

    You can find more information on the IRD website: IRD Payroll giving 

 
 

BEQUESTS / GIFTS IN WILL

 
  • Making a bequest is an important decision and we thank you for considering us.  

    If you have any questions about leaving a gift in your well, please contact us and we will be happy to meet and discuss with you.  

    We encourage you to discuss your plans with your family and legal advisor.  

  • We are honoured that you would consider us as recipients in your Will, and it is important that we can meet any criteria that is laid out in your wishes.  To that end, choosing appropriate wording is important. An example is included below 

    I GIVE free of all duties to Companion Animals New Zealand (registered charity: CC27849), howsoever called now or in the future, the sum of $………   or  

                    [the residue of my estate] or 

                   [ % of the residue of my estate]  

    to be used and applied for general purposes 

    We recommend you discuss your plans and appropriate wording with family and legal advisor.   

  • It is your decision who you tell about your plans. If you decide to discuss you gift with us, we will treat it in strict confidence. We would welcome the opportunity to recognise your generosity and to thank you and discuss how we would see you gift being used in the future.  

    If you have already made provisions in your Will to support our work, and would like to let us know, our senior team would love to thank you in person or over the phone.  

 
 

Maintaining your regular donor details

 
  • As a regular donor, you can access your account through the 'Manage my donations' button included from your first donation email titled ‘Thanks for becoming a regular donor’. Once inside your accounts, you can update your account details as needed by navigating to the ‘My Account’ area. 

    If you experience any issues with this, please contact us at: fundraising@companionanimals.nz 

  • If you wish to unsubscribe to emails, you can access the unsubscribe link at the bottom of your email (please note this does not apply to donation receipts and password resets). 

    If you experience any issues with this, please contact us at: fundraising@companionanimals.nz 

  • Companion Animals New Zealand is committed to your right to privacy. For compliance reasons, we need to collect some person information from our donors. However, this data is stored in accordance with our privacy policy here. 

 
 

CANZ FAQ

 
  • Companion Animals New Zealand (CANZ) is a registered national animal welfare charity (CC27849). Alongside our animal welfare programme of work, we own and manage the New Zealand Companion Animal Register – a lost and found register with more than 1.3 million animals’ microchip details.  

  • CANZ is an independent animal welfare charity. 

    A number of animal welfare organisations were key to helping to establish our oganisation, which was established in February 1996, as the formally named New Zealand Companion Animal Council. CANZ has representatives from a diverse range of animal welfare groups, including our key stakeholders and trustees which include the SPCA, New Zealand Veterinary Association (NZVA), Dogs NZ, New Zealand Cat Fancy, the New Zealand Veterinary Nursing Association (NZVNA) and the New Zealand Institute of Animal Management (NZIAM). These original animal organisations still have the ability to nominate someone who can sit on the CANZ Board. However, CANZ is an organisation in its own right, with its own vision, objectives and management.  

  • Our NZ Companion Animal Register connects more than 1.3 million pets with their guardians via their registered microchip numbers. Our register has more than 950 Approved Users nationwide. These Approved Users include vet clinics, SPCA and animal welfare officers.  There are more than 400,000 pet owners with animals registered with us, and we engage with all of these animal guardians (owners) in our welfare work to gain valuable insights into the ‘state of the nation’ for our NZ pets. We believe that ensuring our pets are identifiable is a key aspect of positive welfare. 

  • CANZ is an independent animal welfare charity managed by a Board of Trustees and with its own Trust Deed. We are not affiliated with any political party.  

  • If you want to talk to someone about a problem related to donations please in the first instance email the Donor Support team (fundraising@companionanimals.nz) or if you prefer you can contact the CANZ General Manager manager@companionanimals.nz