My Dog Is My Home

What My Dog Is My Home does

My Dog Is My Home (MDIMH) is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization incorporated in New York (EIN 81-4390651), founded in 2013 and headquartered at a PO Box in Ridgewood, NY, that exists to increase access to pet-inclusive emergency and affordable housing for people experiencing homelessness with companion animals. The organization was founded by Christine Kim, who continues to serve as Executive Director, and operates with a small staff of 1-10 supported primarily by volunteers. MDIMH's mission is to eliminate the trade-off between shelter and companion animals that homeless individuals and families frequently face, working at the intersection of the human services and animal welfare sectors.

MDIMH generates revenue exclusively through donations (via a Qgiv donation portal), foundation grants, corporate sponsorships, and conference fees — it has no product pricing model and provides its services at no cost to beneficiaries. Its core offerings are: a Technical Assistance Program providing customized consulting to emergency housing providers, affordable housing developers, and municipalities; an Annual Co-Sheltering Conference (held virtually since 2021 with a confirmed 2026 edition); the Fellowship Program, a competitive immersive program for homeless service providers; the Co-Sheltering Collaborative, a national peer-to-peer learning network using a Collective Impact framework; a Storytelling Program that empowers individuals with lived experience; and a publications/video library produced in collaboration with academic partners including the Animals & Society Institute, Design Resources for Homelessness, and HPRI at USC. Distribution is direct and event-driven: virtual conference platforms (Whova), in-person open house tours at model co-sheltering facilities across seven-plus US cities (New York, Los Angeles, San Diego, Cincinnati, Seattle, Nashville, Gainesville), quarterly virtual working group meetings, academic lectures, and direct technical assistance email consultation.

Key partners include Maddie's Fund (Platinum Underwriter and primary visible grantor with ~$48.8K tracked across 2022-2023), PetSmart Charities, National Alliance to End Homelessness, Urban Resource Institute (PALS program), Father Joe's Villages, PATH, New Horizons, and Found House. MDIMH has played an active role in federal and state policy advocacy, including championing the PUPP Act in 2023 (proposed $5M/year FY2024-2028 grant program) and influencing California's Pet Assistance and Support (PAS) program, which disbursed $15.75 million across 243 sites enabling approximately 489 unhoused pet owners annually to access shelter with 886 exits to permanent housing recorded. The organization's competitive position rests on its decade-long first-mover status in the national co-sheltering field, its ecosystem of model facilities, and its recognition (GuideStar Platinum Seal of Transparency) as the de facto coordinating body for pet-inclusive homelessness services in the United States.

Name

My Dog Is My Home

Legal name

My Dog Is My Home

Website

https://mydogismyhome.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

National 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2013 that increases pet-inclusive emergency and affordable housing through technical assistance, an annual co-sheltering conference, a fellowship program, and the Co-Sheltering Collaborative network serving housing providers, municipalities, and people with lived experience.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social Services Advocacy

NAICS

Community Housing Services (62422)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Animal Shelters & Adoption Services (BPAGAIAA)

Keywords

• Pet-inclusive housing
• Homeless services advocacy
• Co-sheltering programs
• Animal welfare nonprofit
• Technical assistance services

Headquarters

HQ city

Ridgewood

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: MDIMH operates primarily on donations from individuals and organizations. The website features a donate button and encourages monthly giving. The organization is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with EIN Tax ID: 81-4390651.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

My Dog Is My Home is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides technical assistance, advocacy, community building, storytelling programs, and an annual conference to advance pet-inclusive emergency and affordable housing. It serves homeless service providers, affordable housing developers, municipalities, and individuals with lived experience of homelessness with companion animals, all delivered at no cost to beneficiaries.

Product overview

My Dog Is My Home is a national nonprofit organization that operates as a service and advocacy organization, not a technology product company. Its offerings consist of multiple interconnected programs designed to increase pet-inclusive emergency and affordable housing: the Technical Assistance Program provides customized consulting to housing providers; the Annual Co-Sheltering Conference unites professionals through virtual events; the Fellowship Program offers immersive learning experiences with site visits; the Co-Sheltering Collaborative provides a peer-to-peer learning network; the Storytelling Program amplifies voices of those with lived experience; and Publications and Video Library serve as knowledge resources documenting research and best practices. These programs work together to advance the organization's mission of preserving the human-animal bond in circumstances of homelessness.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Technical Assistance Program Customized consulting support for emergency housing providers, affordable housing developers, and municipalities to welcome pets into their facilities.
• Annual Co-Sheltering Conference Annual virtual conference connecting hundreds of human service and animal welfare professionals across the United States and globally to advance pet-inclusive housing practices through workshops, panels, storytelling, and networking.
• Co-Sheltering Collaborative National peer-to-peer learning network where members exchange resources, share policies, and work collectively to advance pet-inclusive sheltering practices across the country.
• Fellowship Program One-year immersive learning experience for homeless service providers nationwide, including paid travel to Open House events at model facilities, mentorship, quarterly Zoom meetings, and ongoing technical assistance.
• Storytelling Program Program that supports individuals with lived experience of homelessness in telling their own stories and deciding where and how those stories will be shared, serving both empowerment and advocacy.
• Open House Events In-person facility tours at model pet-inclusive co-sheltering facilities across the US where attendees learn best practices, policies, and procedures for sheltering people with companion animals.
• Publications Research reports, articles, and resources on co-sheltering practices, trauma-informed design, and pet-inclusive housing policy, produced in collaboration with partner organizations.
• Video Library Educational video collection featuring exhibit storytelling videos from individuals with lived experience of homelessness and recordings from annual conferences.

Quantifiable outcome

• California's PAS program disbursed $15.75 million to 243 sites, enabling approximately 489 unhoused pet owners to access shelter annually and resulting in 886 exits to permanent housing (approximately 20% of program participants).
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• National Alliance to End HomelessnesscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) is a Supporter of MDIMH and a co-author of the 'Keeping People and Pets Together' resource. MDIMH has presented at NAEH conferences and the organizations collaborate on advancing pet-inclusive policies within the homeless services sector.
• Design Resources for HomelessnessmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMDIMH partnered with Design Resources for Homelessness to publish a two-part report series on trauma-informed design for serving people experiencing homelessness with companion animals. Part 1 covers emerging social services response guidelines; Part 2 presents real-world examples of trauma-informed design supporting both humans and animals.
• Animals & Society InstitutemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMDIMH collaborated with the Animals & Society Institute (ASI) on a qualitative research study exploring current approaches to co-sheltering people experiencing homelessness with their companion animals. The study used a comparative case study approach to document policies, practices, challenges, and lessons learned, funded by a grant from Maddie's Fund.
• Urban Resource Institute (URI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerURI is a key co-host of MDIMH open house events in New York City, showcasing their PALS (People and Animals Living Safely) program — a pet-inclusive domestic violence shelter model. URI is described as the country's largest provider of domestic violence sheltering services and has been pioneering co-sheltering since 2013.
• Found House Interfaith Housing NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFound House in Cincinnati, Ohio is a co-host of MDIMH open house events and a model program for pet-inclusive homelessness services. Their Pet Support Program provides temporary boarding for animals when owners seek emergency shelter, and they operate fully pet-inclusive supportive housing. The organization has been operating the Pet Support Program for nearly a decade.
• New Horizons (Seattle, WA)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew Horizons is an animal-inclusive shelter and housing organization for youth experiencing homelessness in Seattle, WA. MDIMH features New Horizons as a model co-sheltering program and co-hosts open house events at their facility to showcase their policies and procedures for allowing staff and participants to include companion animals in all aspects of care.
• Father Joe's Villages (San Diego, CA)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFather Joe's Villages is co-host of MDIMH open houses in San Diego. The organization serves over 2,000 people nightly and operates fully pet-inclusive interim housing programs. Their pet-inclusive model was implemented with MDIMH's support and serves as a demonstration site for other providers.
• PATH (People Assisting the Homeless, Los Angeles, CA)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPATH LA is co-host of MDIMH open houses in Los Angeles and is noted as operating LA County's first formally sanctioned companion animal program within an interim housing facility, which has evolved over fifteen years of operation. MDIMH co-hosted open houses at PATH's pet-inclusive shelter to share their model.
• PetHelpFinder.orgminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPetHelpFinder.org is listed as a 'Friend' sponsor of MDIMH's annual conference and serves as a resource referral partner for individuals seeking pet assistance, directing people experiencing homelessness with pets to available services.
• HPRI (Housing Policy Research Initiative, USC)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHPRI published a comprehensive analysis of California's $15.75 million Pet Assistance and Support (PAS) program, examining how PAS funds were implemented and how providers experienced the program. The report highlights the role of pet-inclusive policies in expanding access to housing and services.
• Unitarian Universalist Ministry for EarthminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMDIMH was interviewed by Reverend Daniel Lawlor, Co-Director of the Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth, about the PUPP Act and its connection to climate justice. MDIMH has engaged faith communities to discuss the importance of advocating for pet-friendly housing policy.
• Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in OhiominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio (COHHIO) is a sponsor of MDIMH's open house events in Cincinnati and supports the co-sheltering movement in Ohio through collaborative programming with Found House.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Pets of the Homeless: National nonprofit providing pet food, veterinary care, and emergency sheltering for the pets of people experiencing homelessness. Directly comparable mission (homeless + pets) with an emphasis on direct services rather than MDIMH's advocacy/TA model.
• Feeding Pets of the Homeless: Foundation focused on providing pet food and veterinary care to homeless individuals' pets nationwide. Comparable population (homeless pet owners) and nonprofit structure; differs in providing material aid vs. policy/TA.
• The Street Dog Coalition: Nonprofit providing free veterinary care and pet support to pets of people experiencing homelessness via volunteer-led clinics. Overlaps with MDIMH on the human-animal-homeless intersection, with more emphasis on direct medical care.
• RedRover: National nonprofit that shelters animals in crisis, including those fleeing domestic violence alongside owners, and provides Safe Escape grants for domestic-violence survivors with pets. Closely comparable on the DV-sheltering intersection MDIMH addresses via partners like URI.
• Urban Resource Institute (URI): Operates the PALS (People and Animals Living Safely) program — pet-inclusive domestic violence shelters — and is a core MDIMH open-house co-host. Closely aligned on the co-sheltering mission even though URI is a direct service provider rather than an advocacy nonprofit.

Broad incumbents

• National Alliance to End Homelessness: Largest national policy and advocacy organization on homelessness. MDIMH is a co-author with NAEH on 'Keeping People and Pets Together,' making NAEH the closest broad-incumbent counterpart — operating at much greater scale across all homelessness policy, not just the pet-inclusive niche.
• ASPCA: One of the largest U.S. animal welfare organizations and an MDIMH conference sponsor (Advocate-level). Could move into the pet-inclusive housing space at scale and crowd MDIMH out as the field's convener.
• Humane Society of the United States: Nation's largest animal welfare protection organization with extensive lobbying and grant-making capacity. Comparable on the animal-welfare mission overlap; has the scale to absorb MDIMH's niche if it gains mainstream attention.
• Best Friends Animal Society: Leading national animal welfare organization running the 'No Kill' movement and operating sanctuary/community programs. Comparable as a large animal welfare incumbent that could enter pet-inclusive housing advocacy at scale.

Others

• Maddie's Fund: Major family foundation supporting animal welfare innovation and MDIMH's primary funder (Platinum Underwriter). Operates as a grantmaker/ecosystem enabler rather than a direct peer, but its priorities materially shape MDIMH's funding runway.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/mydogismyhome
• Facebookfacebook.com/mydogismyhome

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors1 record

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about My Dog Is My Home