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Currently there is no way for organizations to import contacts directly through their account. However, our support team is happy to do this for you. If you would like RescueGroups.org to import a contact list, please format it according to the instructions below. We can accept the data in an Excel spreadsheet or CSV file. Once your file is ready for importing, email your request, along with the file, to our support team at support@rescuegroups.org. 

We've created a very simple Excel spreadsheet that can guide you with how to share your contacts data.  It's meant to be a help if you need RescueGroups.org to do a one-time quick import of your contacts.  Download the sample data file here.

Please be aware that our manual import process does not check to see if the contact you are adding already exists in your organization's RescueGroups.org account. This means that duplicate contacts will be created using the Import Contacts process if the contact already had a record. You can merge contacts if you find that a duplicate has been created, but there is no merge detection feature at this time. 


On this page:


Formatting the contacts file

To format the contacts data file correctly for import:

  • First and last name must be separate columns
  • Zip/postal code and Plus4 must be separate columns
  • The state column should use only the 2 letter state abbreviation
  • Work number and extension must be separate columns
  • Street, city, state must be separate columns
  • Email address fields should be only one address
  • Contacts have one general comment field, so any additional information can be combined into that column
  • Active, Caretaker Public and Send Mail are required Yes/No fields
  • Class is a required field (possible values included in Sample Data File)

Understanding the import columns

Below are some columns that we can import (see the full list in the attached sample file):

  • Salutation, Firstname, Lastname
  • Street, City, State, Zip/Postal Code, Plus4 (Zip code)
  • Email Address, Alternate Email Address
  • Home, Cell and Work phones including carriers (Ex. Verizon, AT&T, etc)
  • Comment - combine all other information into one column
  • Sendmail is for approval to send mail to the contact (default is yes)
  • CaretakerPublic is how we determine if a foster parent would want their contact info shared in animal listings
  • Availability is just a text field of 250 characters. No specified format that can be used by groups for their needs
  • Active new contact records default to Yes (Active).  For more information on what it means to be inactive please visit our guide on Inactivating a Contact
  • Groups (Volunteer, Adopter, Donor, etc) – For more information, visit our guide on Contact Groups

For assistance with importing your contacts, please contact support.


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