The Animal Rescue League of Iowa’s annual Tree of Life event is an opportunity to leave gifts for homeless pets under the tree and help supply the shelter with items the animals depend on every day.
- This event has passed.
Tree of Life 2025
December 1, 2025 — December 31, 2025
Give a gift to a pet in need this holiday season
Make a difference this December. Leave a gift for a homeless pet.
How to make a gift
Bring a Gift:
Choose an item from our Wish List and put it under the tree at one of our drop-off locations in the Des Moines metro.
Contactless Gifting:
Give a gift with an online order! When you donate items from our wish lists, they ship directly to us.
Gift a Day of Care:
It costs just $20 to gift 1 day of care to a homeless pet! Make a donation to a pet in need below and we’ll display an ornament at the ARL as a symbol of your donation. Ornaments can feature your name, the animal lover in your life, in memory of a loved one or pet, etc.
DONATE HERE!
Tree of Life Drop-off Locations
*ARL Main – 5452 NE 22nd St.
*Des Moines Animal Services – 1441 Harriet St.
ARL Afford-A-Care Pet Clinic-East – 1258 E 14th St.
ARL Afford-A-Care Pet Clinic-South – 3003 SE 14th St.
Blue Pearl Pet Hospital – 4631 Merle Hay Rd.
*Bone-A-Patreat – 4110 University Ave.
Dough Co. Pizza – Drake – 2330 University Ave.
Downtown Doggy Daycare – 724 Scott Ave.
Fuzzy’s Taco Shop – 300 W Martin Luther King Jr Pkwy Suite 120.
Confluence Brewing Company – 1235 Thomas Beck Rd.
*Pet Supplies Plus – 4211 Fleur Dr.
Lift DSM – 4230 Fleur Dr.
*Petco Army Post Road– 1311 E Army Post Rd.
ARL West-Iowa Pet Food & Seascapes – 1500 22nd St.
*Coffee Cats Cafe – 312 5th St.
Camp Bow Wow – 2900 University Ave., Suite 250
*Bone-A-Patreat – 9250 University Ave., Suite 103
*Petco – 6805 Mills Civic Pkwy
Ankeny Animal & Avian Clinic – 742 S Ankeny Blvd
*Bone-A-Patreat– 6130 S Ankeny Blvd
Stewart Sport & Spine Physical Therapy – 502 N Ankeny Blvd Suite 4
Dough Co. Pizza – 2405 SW White Birch Dr Ste 100
*Pet Smart – 1715 SE Delaware Ave
*The Outlets of Des Moines – Food Pavilion – 801 Bass Pro Dr. NW
*Bone-A-Patreat – 550 36th Ave. SW, Suite Q
*Urbandale – Bone-A-Patreat – 3735 86th St.
Clive – Des Moines Cosmetic Dentistry – 2375 Berkshire Pkwy.
Johnston – Sullivan Family Pet Hospital – 5985 NW 62nd Ave.
Grimes – Dogwoods Lodge – 2960 SE Grimes Blvd.
Dallas Center – Dog Stylist Cheyenne – 1401 Walnut St.
Indianola – Sticks & Balls – 116 E Ashland Ave.
St. Charles – The Talk Shop – 3357 St Charles Rd.
Look for the * symbol—these locations let you shop for donated goods and drop off donations all in one spot!
For Dogs
- Easy Cheese (in a can)
- Whipped cream
- Hot dogs
- Peanut butter (creamy, no xylitol please)
- Calming chews
- Dog treats
- Dog chews (no rawhide, please)
- Vienna sausages
- Nylabones – large and XL
- Benebones – large and XL
- KONGs, medium
- KONGs – XL for extreme chewers
- KONGs – XXL for extreme chewers
- KONGs – large for extreme chewers
- Chicken broth and beef broth (for making pupsicles)
- Canned pumpkin
- Small rugs (must be able to fit in a washer/dryer)
- Adaptil
- Adaptil collars
- Martingale collars (any size, preferably green)
- Rope toys
- Dog crates, 42″ and 48″ (this is the exact item we need)
- Applesauce
- Grooming wipes
- Puppy Milk Replacer
- Slip leads (6 ft.)
- Slip leads (10 ft.)
- Chain leads
- Flea and tick treatment
- Joint supplements
- Lick Mats
- Frisbees
- Quart food storage bags (for holding dog treats)
- Freeze dried beef liver
- Freeze dried chicken
- Freeze dried lamb liver
- Dog bubbles (used for enrichment)
- Wobble Wag Giggle Ball
- KONG Balls – large
- KONG Wobblers
- Boomer Balls — 6″ or larger
- Flirt poles
- Plastic containers with lids (yogurt containers or similar) – for making pupsicles
- Ice cube trays for making “pupsicles” (bone shape & paw shape)
- Easy Walk Harnesses (XL)
- Easy Walk Harnesses (large)
- Easy Walk Harnesses (medium)
- Easy Walk Harnesses (small)
- Poop bags
- Poop scoopers
- Stainless steel food/water bowls
- Bath towels (full-size)
- Blankets
- Flat bedsheets (no fitted sheets, please)
For Cats
- Cat litter (non-clumping, unscented)
- Churu lickable cat treats
- Da Bird cat toy
- Da Bird feather refills
- Feliway diffuser
- Feliway diffuser refills
- Cat scratchers (13-pack is best for our kennels)
- Canned tuna
- Baby food
- Hanging cat toys
- Calming treats
- Cat carriers
- Kitten formula
- Heating pads
- Snuggle Kitties and Snuggle Puppies
- Kitten grooming wipes
- Flea and Tick Spray
- Feeding Nipples
- Nursing bottles
- Totes to make neonate kits for foster homes (this is the exact item we need)
- Jingle balls and ping pong balls
- Sardines (in water)
- Flea combs
- Nutri-cal for kittens
- Feeding tubes
- Bowls (stainless steel, for food or water)
- Blankets (fabric or knitted – 18×18″)
- Small rugs (must be able to fit in a washer/dryer)
- Glitter balls
- Fuzzy mice
- Kicker toys
- Water Bowls
- Feliway
- Kitten Milk Replacer – cans
- Blender bottles (20 oz., new or used)
- Rescue wipes
- Stainless steel food/water bowls
- Vaseline
- Back scratchers
- Lick mats
- Paper sacks
- Large litterboxes for foster homes
- Joint supplements
- Calming collars
- Shredded paper
- Stools
- Moist cat treats (no catnip, please)
- Crunchy cat treats (no catnip, please)
- Bird seed (used in bird feeders outside cat adoption areas for enrichment)
- Plastic treat balls
- Cat scales (this is the exact item we need)
- Heating blankets
For Small Animals
- Timothy hay
- Rabbit litter
- Small animal bedding (no pine bedding, please)
- Bamboo sticks
- Apple sticks
- Water bottles
- Kaytee Perfect Chew toys for rabbits and small animals
- Small animal treats
- Hanging toys for birds
- Small wooden ladders for birds
- Pumice or rope perches for birds
- Fruit (Bananas, blackberries, raspberries, watermelon, pumpkin)
- Vegetables (Romaine lettuce, celery, collard greens, arugula, bell peppers, broccoli, bok choy, cabbage, kale, watercress)
For Barn Animals
- Lead rope
- First aid items (Fly repellent ointment, rash cream, bandages, veterinary thermometer, wound care spray, wound ointment)
- Chicken scratch grains
- Horse feed (Amplify Supplement or Purina Enrich)
- Senior horse feed (Purina, Triple Crown or Nutrena)
- Horse spray-on fly protection
- Sweet feed and alfalfa pellets (used for training)
- Black rubber horse feed pans
- Muck forks
- Muck buckets
- Chicken toys
Gift Cards and Other Supplies
- Pre-paid gasoline cards (for animal transport vehicles)
- Gift cards to pet supply stores, Hy-Vee, and Walmart
- Duct tape
- Zip Ties
- 10×13 Mailing envelopes
- Batteries – AAA, AA, C, D, 9V
- Label-maker tape – white
- Sticky notes/Post-it notes
- Carabiners
- Pens
- Dry Erase Markers
- Command strips
- Paper – multicolor, cardstock for laser printer
- Paper – white, letter or cardstock for laser printer
- Exam gloves (large, XL or medium)
- Trash bags – 60 gallon or larger
- Wild bird food
- Acrylic yarn or cotton yarn (no wool blends, chunky yarns or fun-fur yarn, please)
- Tape rolls
- Binder clips
- Scissors (this is the exact item we need)
- Screwdrivers
- Can openers
- Pill bottles
