Stay in the story Monthly news from the sanctuary, the Lucky Bus, and the dogs we couldn't unsee.
Volunteer at the sanctuary

Crivatu, Romania. Come and see the work for yourself.

Penny's Ark Sanctuary is situated less than an hour from Bucharest. It runs on a very small team and the UK supporters who find their way over for a few days or a week. Volunteers from our UK team visit as often as possible. This page is for anyone thinking about making that trip and helping.

Five ways to help

Five ways to come and help.

Sanctuary volunteering is not for everyone. It is rural Romania, it is hands-on, and some of the dogs are not ready for strangers yet. But for the right people, a few days at Crivatu changes how they see the work and how they talk about it when they get home.

The five routes

How to come to Crivatu.

Each option below is a current, real way to help on the Romania side. Choose what fits your time, your skills and how you want to travel. Get in touch and we will come back to you the same week.

1-3 days · self-funded travel

Sanctuary visit

Come and meet the team. Walk the perimeter with Catalin. Sit with the long-stayers. See where your donations actually land. Most people arrive wondering whether it is all real. They leave with a different question. We’ll help arrange airport pick-up and a place to stay at the Sanctuary or in the village.

Plan a visit
Long weekend · group trip · twice a year

Work party / build trip

Group trips of 6-10 supporters, March and September, for real building and maintenance work: kennel construction, fence repair, painting, mucking-out, kit-out of the new pen. Travel and accommodation are organised as a group. Talk to us at least 8 weeks ahead so we can sort dates, cost per head and the right skill mix.

Next trip dates
By arrangement · short focused trips

Specialist visit

Vets, vet nurses, professional groomers, behaviourists, photographers, videographers. Short focused trips for specialist work the sanctuary can't staff year-round: spay days, mass grooms, behavioural assessments, photography for adoption listings. Travel and stay are usually self-funded; we provide on-site coordination, materials and translation.

Email Lindsey
1 week+ · live on-site

Long-term stay

Stay at the sanctuary for a week or more. Daily care, walking, slowly building trust with the long-term residents. This is rural Romania: we are an hour from a supermarket. Particularly useful between September and March, when there are fewer paid hands. It is not for everyone, but the people who do it tend to come back.

Talk to Lindsey
From the UK · drop-off

Donation drive / supply run

Coordinate a UK collection (beds, blankets, leads, harnesses, vet meds, dry food, toys) and help get it onto the next Lucky Bus run to Crivatu. Particularly useful before winter and ahead of the spring intake. We will send you a current list of what the sanctuary needs.

Current needs list
Practical info

What to expect before you book.

Honest answers to the questions every first-time sanctuary volunteer asks us.

Getting there

Fly to Bucharest Henri Coandă (OTP). Crivatu is about an hour's drive south-west of the airport. We can arrange a pick-up in advance for a small fee that covers fuel and the driver's time. Or you can hire a car: Romanian rural roads are manageable if you have driven in continental Europe before.

Where you stay

Most volunteers stay in local guesthouses or Airbnbs in the village or in nearby Mihailesti. Long-term volunteers can stay on-site in a basic guest room: running water, electricity, a wood stove, limited Wi-Fi. Once we know your dates we will point you at a few options across different price points.

What it costs

Most short visits work out at £300-£600 all-in for flights, accommodation and airport transfer for a long weekend, depending on season and how flexible you are with dates. Work parties usually share a larger Airbnb and split the cost. Penny's Ark does not subsidise travel (every pound of donation has to go to the dogs), but we do not ask volunteers to pay anything to us.

What to bring

Old clothes you don't mind getting muddy. Sturdy boots. A waterproof. Treats (the dogs love anything from a UK supermarket they don't see in Romania). If you want to bring supplies for the sanctuary, ask us first for the current list. A little coordination goes a long way.

Language

Catalin, our Guardian, speaks limited English. Enough for the work, though not for deep conversation. Most volunteers manage fine with phone-translation apps and a shared language around the dogs. Lindsey is on WhatsApp throughout your visit and can translate anything tricky.

One honest note Some of the dogs are not ready for strangers yet. Several are still scared of human hands. Catalin will tell you which dogs are which on your first day. The work is genuinely rewarding, but it is not a petting zoo. Coming in with that expectation tends not to end well for anyone.