Current:Home > MyAnimal shelters think creatively to help families keep their pets amid "crisis"-DB Wealth Institute B2 Expert Reviews
Animal shelters think creatively to help families keep their pets amid "crisis"
View Date:2024-12-23 18:48:58
Animal shelters across the country say they are approaching a crisis level in terms of the number of pets being given up. A shortage of workers, foster owners and veterinarians is making the crisis worse, and with shelters full, the euthanasia rate has climbed to a three-year high.
One facility in Colorado is working to make a difference with a social worker who is trying to keep beloved pets with their families.
Josie Pigeon is the Denver Animal Shelter's new social worker. She thinks of her role as being "the hyphen in the human-animal bond" and works to make sure pet owners can access assistance programs and low-cost pet care so they don't have to give up their furry friends.
The shelter has started a "Safe Haven" program where it will take in pets temporarily for up to a month. Through its community engagement program, it provides free vaccinations, microchips and food for pets. The program has also helped spay or neuter nearly 4,000 animals. These are the services that Pigeon works to connect people with so they can keep pets at their homes.
"The best case scenario for these animals is to never have to come to the animal shelter," said Pigeon, who estimates that she has helped 100 families so far this year.
That's just a drop in the bucket compared to the need nationwide. Shelters are dealing with a tsunami of pets that have been given up for adoption. In New York City, the number of surrendered pets is up 20% this year, while a shelter in Fulton County, Georgia is operating at 400% capacity. Detroit is planning to double the capacity of its shelters to keep pace.
Stephanie Filer, who runs Shelter Animals Count, a group that tracks animal shelter populations, said the situation is "beyond crisis mode."
"It's really at a breaking point where the system can't continue this way for much longer," Filer said.
Filer added that the surge appears to be largely driven by economic factors like the lifting of eviction moratoriums and rising housing costs.
"People are not making these decisions to bring their pet to a shelter out of convenience," Filer said. "They're really doing it out of desperation or necessity after trying everything else possible. The biggest challenge right now is housing."
- In:
- Animal Shelters
- Pets
- Denver
- Animal Rescue
Kris Van Cleave is CBS News' senior transportation and national correspondent based in Phoenix.
TwitterveryGood! (85935)
Related
- FBI raids New York City apartment of Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan, reports say
- The Daily Money: Americans are ditching their cars
- Kamala Harris says she intends to earn and win Democratic presidential nomination
- Hunter Biden drops lawsuit against Fox News over explicit images featured in streaming series
- TikToker Campbell “Pookie” Puckett Gives Birth, Welcomes First Baby With Jett Puckett
- Esta TerBlanche, who played Gillian Andrassy on 'All My Children,' dies at 51
- Esta TerBlanche, who played Gillian Andrassy on 'All My Children,' dies at 51
- Real Housewives of New Jersey Star Melissa Gorga Shares the 1 Essential She Has in Her Bag at All Times
- Jeep slashes 2025 Grand Cherokee prices
- Air travel delays continue, though most airlines have recovered from global tech outage
Ranking
- Gavin Rossdale Makes Rare Public Appearance With Girlfriend Xhoana Xheneti
- Ex-Philadelphia police officer sentenced to at least 8 years in shooting death of 12-year-old boy
- Judge Orders Oil and Gas Leases in Wyoming to Proceed After Updated BLM Environmental Analysis
- Inter Miami stars Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez won’t play in MLS All-Star Game due to injury
- KFC sues Church's Chicken over 'original recipe' fried chicken branding
- Lightning strikes in Greece start fires, kill cattle amid dangerous heat wave
- Trump says he thinks Harris is no better than Biden in 2024 matchup
- Airlines, government and businesses rush to get back on track after global tech disruption
Recommendation
-
Jelly Roll goes to jail (for the best reason) ahead of Indianapolis concert
-
Katy Perry's 'Woman's World' isn't the feminist bop she promised. She's stuck in the past.
-
Nashville-area GOP House race and Senate primaries top Tennessee’s primary ballot
-
Air travel delays continue, though most airlines have recovered from global tech outage
-
West Virginia governor-elect Morrisey to be sworn in mid-January
-
No one hurt when CSX locomotive derails and strikes residential garage in Niagara Falls
-
Truck driver charged in Ohio interstate crash that killed 3 students, 3 others
-
Higher tax rates, smaller child tax credit and other changes await as Trump tax cuts end