Camp Cocker Rescue

A brand refresh and website rebuild for a California rescue organization supporting high-needs cocker spaniels – resulting in a more consistent visual identity, easier adoption workflows, and a website that finally matches the heart of their mission.
The Challenge

Camp Cocker Rescue, founded in 2007, has earned a strong reputation for rehabilitating medically complex cocker spaniels and placing them in loving homes. But by 2025, the organization had outgrown its DIY brand and website. Their social media presence was fun, vibrant, and full of personality—yet their website told a very different story. It felt flat, outdated, and required a staggering amount of manual upkeep that pulled precious time and energy away from their small but mighty team.

The original Squarespace site had ballooned to nearly 1,000 individual pages, making it increasingly difficult to keep information current. Updating adoptable dogs, sharing their stories, and adding new photos and videos became a time-consuming challenge, especially in the midst of active rescue work.

It was clear the organization needed a more efficient, sustainable system—one that would support a fast-moving team, provide clarity for adopters and donors, and reflect the warmth, compassion, and reliability at the heart of their mission.

Brand Personality

Camp Cocker Rescue exemplifies the Companion brand personality – steady, empathetic, relationship-driven, and deeply rooted in care. Loyalty, trust, and connection guide every part of their mission.

Because the organization had built such a large and devoted community, their brand refresh needed to be handled with intention. Our goal wasn’t to reinvent who they were, but to honor the quirky, joyful energy their supporters already loved! Our work focused on aligning their visual identity with that Companion personality so the brand finally looked and felt like Camp Cocker in every way.

Logo Refresh

The existing logo, originally created using Canva, didn’t capture the Camp Cocker’s personality or the quality of care they provided. The illustration felt too serious and stern for their big hearted vibe and the system offered no flexibility for expanding into badges, submarks, or multi-platform use.

The new logo suite features:

  • A custom hand-drawn cocker spaniel illustration that conveys optimism and approachability
  • Flexible layouts for print, digital, and merchandise
  • And a refined color palette that aligns with the organization’s tone and personality

The new symbol honors the rescue’s reputation and feels 10000% Camp Cocker.

Visual Identity

With the logo in place, the broader visual system was developed to create consistency and give the team plenty of fun and quirky elements to play with on social media. The identity includes:

  • A warm, cohesive color palette inspired by natural tones and cocker spaniel coats,
  • Friendly, legible typography choices suitable for both emotional storytelling and operational clarity,
  • A clean, modular design system that reduces visual clutter,
  • Aand branded elements—icons, badges, and patterns—that add personality without overwhelming the content.

The resulting identity feels unified, recognizable, and distinctly “Camp Cocker.”

Icons & Illustrations

We developed a set of custom icons and playful illustrations designed to:

  • Add joy and personality across the website and social channels
  • Make every adoptable dog profile feel special
  • Give the team easy-to-use assets for storytelling

These little touches go a long way in making a rescue feel trustworthy, friendly, and memorable.

WordPress Website

Camp Cocker’s new website – developed in partnership with Ed Harris of Blue Hills Digital – was built with clarity, usability, and longevity at the forefront. We focused on creating a more intuitive navigation system, elevating each dog’s story, and preserving a full historical archive of every dog the organization has rescued. The result is a site that not only reflects the heart of their mission but is also equipped to grow alongside their work.

Key improvements include:

  • A streamlined WordPress system for managing adoptable dogs, with dedicated fields for photos, videos, updates, and behavioral notes
  • Clear, intuitive navigation tailored to the needs of adopters, donors, and volunteers
  • More accessible design and improved legibility across all layouts
  • A backend structure that reduces duplication and significantly cuts maintenance time
  • A cleaner, more strategic site architecture built for SEO, long-term content management, and organizational growth

Best of all, Camp Cocker Rescue’s new digital home puts their dogs front and center – celebrating their stories and supporting the compassionate work behind every rescue – while saving their team substantial time each week.

“Working with Lauren and HeartSpark Design was an amazing experience. She is organized, collaborative, and well worth the investment. Before this project, our brand was chaotic and inconsistent, but now everything feels cohesive and professional, from our logo and colors to our beautifully streamlined website. The new site not only looks incredible but saves us enormous time with features that make managing adoptable dogs easy and intuitive. Lauren’s communication throughout the process made everything seamless, and the result truly reflects who we are as an organization.”

– Cathy Stanley, Founder of Camp Cocker Rescue

Lauren Atherton
Creative Direction, Logo Design, Website Design

Ed Harris
Website Development

Hamza Ouaziz
Animation

Brand Level-Up

Logo & Visual Identity

WordPress Website

Animal Rescue

October 2025

Similar Case Studies

This tech-forward nonprofit got a fresh look and website to match their bold vision of coaching kids with
Honoring 60 years of I/DD services with a brand and website centered around community and built for the
Fresh take on an after-school program for at-promise youth.
Radio Categories
Branding and marketing are often lumped together, but they serve two very different purposes. In this post, you’ll learn the real difference between branding and marketing, why the order matters, and how to set your organization up for more powerful, consistent, and aligned communications.
If talking about your nonprofit feels confusing or unclear, you’re not alone. The SPARK Strategy is a simple, powerful framework to help you confidently communicate your mission, connect with the right people, and inspire more support. In this post, I’ll walk you through exactly how it works and how to get started.
This post breaks down 5 smart strategies to help you build a great nonprofit website, guide visitors to action, and feel proud of how your nonprofit is being shared online.
In this post, I’m sharing the best (and worst!) times to rebrand your nonprofit. Plus how to plan around a milestone events, anniversary, and capital campaigns without overwhelming your team.
If your nonprofit website feels outdated or isn’t converting visitors into donors, these 3 simple fixes can start turning it around. Learn how to turn your site into a fundraising asset today.
If your fundraising feels harder than it should, your brand might be quietly working against you. Watch this quick video to learn how the right brand can help more of the right donors find YOU instead of chasing them.
Branding and marketing are often lumped together, but they serve two very different purposes. In this post, you’ll learn the real difference between branding and marketing, why the order matters, and how to set your organization up for more powerful, consistent, and aligned communications.
If talking about your nonprofit feels confusing or unclear, you’re not alone. The SPARK Strategy is a simple, powerful framework to help you confidently communicate your mission, connect with the right people, and inspire more support. In this post, I’ll walk you through exactly how it works and how to get started.
This post breaks down 5 smart strategies to help you build a great nonprofit website, guide visitors to action, and feel proud of how your nonprofit is being shared online.
In this post, I’m sharing the best (and worst!) times to rebrand your nonprofit. Plus how to plan around a milestone events, anniversary, and capital campaigns without overwhelming your team.
If your nonprofit website feels outdated or isn’t converting visitors into donors, these 3 simple fixes can start turning it around. Learn how to turn your site into a fundraising asset today.
If your fundraising feels harder than it should, your brand might be quietly working against you. Watch this quick video to learn how the right brand can help more of the right donors find YOU instead of chasing them.

Stay in the Loop

Get helpful insights, tips, and news delivered right to your inbox.