> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.rescueconsole.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Donations: Recording and Managing Gifts in RescueConsole

> Log one-off, recurring, and post-adoption gifts, track each donor's full giving history, and accept card payments through your own Stripe account.

Every gift your rescue receives lives on the donor's record in RescueConsole — whether it arrived by card, cash, cheque, or a QR code scanned at an adoption day. From a single record you can see a donor's lifetime giving, their first and last gift, their average gift, and whether they've gone quiet. Nothing lives in a separate spreadsheet, and nothing needs to be re-entered.

## Types of donations you can record

RescueConsole lets you log every kind of gift your rescue receives.

<CardGroup cols={3}>
  <Card title="One-off gifts" icon="circle-dollar-to-slot">
    A single donation from any source — card, cash, cheque, or a payment app you handle outside RescueConsole.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Recurring gifts" icon="arrows-rotate">
    Ongoing pledges logged against the donor's record so you can see expected income and spot lapsed giving early.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Post-adoption gifts" icon="house-heart">
    An additional gift recorded at the time of adoption, either prompted by an adoption-fee link or entered manually after the fact.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## The Giving card on a donor's record

Open any person's record and switch to the **Giving** tab to see everything that donor has ever given. The card surfaces the numbers your team needs without digging through lists:

* **Lifetime giving** — the running total of every recorded gift
* **First gift** — amount and date of the donor's very first contribution
* **Last gift** — amount and date of their most recent gift
* **Average gift** — across all recorded donations
* **Lapsed giving** — a signal when a previously active donor has gone quiet

These figures update the moment a new donation is saved, so your development conversations are always based on current data.

## Recording a donation manually

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the Fundraising workspace">
    Go to **Fundraising → Donations** and select **New donation**, or open the donor's person record and add the donation from the **Giving** tab directly.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose the gift type">
    Select one-off, recurring, or post-adoption. For post-adoption gifts, link the donation to the relevant adoption record so the full story stays connected.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set the amount and method">
    Enter the amount, choose how it was received (card, cash, cheque, or other), and select the payment date. For card payments processed outside RescueConsole, use the method that matches your processor.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Associate it with a campaign">
    If the gift is part of a fundraising drive, select the campaign. The donation is then counted toward that campaign's progress and appears in its donor list.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save">
    The donation is added to the donor's record and the Fundraising ledger immediately.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Taking card payments through your Stripe account

RescueConsole connects directly to **your own Stripe account**, so money flows from the donor straight to your bank. RescueConsole never holds or moves your funds.

You choose who pays the processing fee: absorb it yourself or pass it to the donor at checkout — a single setting in **Settings → Payments** controls this for all card transactions.

## Adoption-fee links with an additional gift option

When you send an adoption-fee payment link, RescueConsole can present the adopter with the option to add a gift on top of their adoption fee — at the same checkout, in one step.

<Tip>
  Turn on the additional-gift prompt on your adoption-fee links. Adopters are already in a generous frame of mind at the moment they pay for an animal, and a single opt-in field at checkout is one of the highest-converting places to ask for a donation. The gift is recorded automatically on the adopter's donor record the moment they pay.
</Tip>

## Accepting payments by QR code

Show an adopter or supporter a QR code and they can pay directly from their phone. Once payment is confirmed, RescueConsole records it in the ledger exactly the way a cash payment would be — no manual entry required, and the donation appears on the donor's record right away.

## Wish lists for in-kind giving

Not every gift is money. If your rescue needs physical items — food, bedding, cleaning supplies — you can add them to a wish list on a campaign. Supporters who want to give in kind can see what you need, and you can record in-kind contributions against a donor's record to keep a full picture of their support.

## Setting your donation amounts

You set the suggested donation amounts that appear on your public donation page and at checkout. Amounts can be configured by species and age group, so the ask for a senior dog adoption differs from a kitten — all in **Settings → Payments**.

## Receipts

Every card donation generates a receipt that carries your organization's legal name and tax status, so donors have what they need for their records without any extra work from your team.