The Humane Society of Greater Miami Adopt-A-Pet believes that the building of a more kind, just and loving community for the pets and people of Miami-Dade County begins with instilling the values of kindness and compassion. At public and private schools, scouting troops, special needs groups, local libraries, various community youth organizations as well as adult organizations, the Humane Society of Greater Miami teaches the young and old appropriate lessons about kindness to animals, empathy, responsible pet care and the causes and results of pet overpopulation. If you would like to request a humane education speaker to visit your child's classroom or scout troop, please follow the instructions at the bottom of this page.

Lisa Depriest, our humane educator and her four-legged teaching companion, Sparky, have shared knowledge & enriched lives of thousand of children and students this year. “As the school year comes to an end, I like to look back and reflect on what stood out the most during my visits.  One school in particular really surprised me because there was not one student or adult that knew, or had even heard of, what a microchip is.  It was a real eye opener about the serious importance of our educational program in the community and it was an absolute joy to educate them on the importance of having an ID for their pet." said Lisa. "We, who are working in the pet-related business, sometimes take our knowledge for granted and when you realize that there are so many members of our community that really do not share that knowledge, it feels so satisfying and rewarding to educate them.  Everyone I met on my educational visits really had a sincere interest in the well being of their pets, but had never been introduced to most of the things we teach them (microchips, heartworm prevention, spay & neuter, to name just a few).  Many people also aren’t aware that there are low cost clinics available, as the one at our North and South location and I am glad to pass that information along. So far, 2012 was a very successful year. We have educated 802 adults and 8,732 children for a total of 9,534 people and it is only June!"

School contests

17th Annual H.O.P.E. Contest

Many studies have shown that while we are taking care of our pets, our pets are taking care of us. Pets provide companionship and many health and safety benefits. The Humane Society of Greater Miami, and Miami-Dade Animal Services want to make sure all pets get the love and care they deserve. The H.O.P.E. contest includes participants from grades 3-8. Click here to learn more about H.O.P.E. contest.

Be Kind to Animals Contest

Be Kind to Animals Contest is an annual contest that honors the unique relationship between animals and humans. For the past 12 years, we have been encouraging our young community to learn about animal issues and to be especially kind to animals. The contest is for the 9th through 12th graders who previously were not included in this contest or the H.O.P.E contest. Participants must be students of Miami-Dade County, currently attending public or private school. Click here to learn more about this contest.

Click here or on the image above to view some of the submitted artworks.

Summer Activities

• June 13th, Sparky and Lisa will be doing presentations at Ron Ehmann Park Summer Camp 10995 SW 97th Ave. at 1:00pm.
• June 14th, we will be presenting at Bird Lakes Park 14365 SW 48th Lane at 1pm.
• June 16th, at noon, The Boy Scouts will visit us at the Humane Society of Greater Miami for a shelter tour
• June 19th till July 31st, every Tuesday at 12:00pm " Wags and Tales" at the Humane Society of Greater Miami. Read a favorite story to a friendly and gentle dog for the Humane Society of Greater Miami's Pet Facilitated reading program. Pre-registration required. Contact the Public Library at 305-891-5535 or 305-335-8215. The Public Library is located at 835 NE 132 street, North Miami 33161.

To Schedule a Humane Education Program

To schedule a visit from the Humane Society of Greater Miami’s Education Department, please call 305-749-1820 between 9am and 5pm weekdays.

• If you leave a message, please include the date you would like to schedule a program for and a convenient time for us to return your call.
• You may fax your request to Humane Education Department at 305-696-4434. Be sure to include the date, time, location, age and size of audience and a contact person and phone number.
• Due to the number of program requests we receive, please try to schedule programs at least one month in advance.
• Programs are available Monday through Friday. Unless otherwise noted, programs usually last thirty to fifty minutes.
• Our programs are designed to be presented to one class-sized group at a time (fewer than 35 students). However, we will be glad to schedule up to four programs per day for as many days as necessary to accommodate all interested teachers at your school. We can occasionally make an exception by presenting to an assembly-sized group of older students, but we find that this is generally not as effective.