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Shelters are struggling. Simple as that.
It doesn't matter if we're talking local or national — shelters are overburdened with overcrowding and longer pet stays. It's an issue that doesn't seem to be going away, but not for a lack of trying.
"With cost of inflation, everything's going up," said Brianna Shahly, marketing and communication coordinator for the Humane Society of West Michigan. "So the cost of care for our animals is rising. We're also seeing that we have more animals coming into our care because families are struggling to balance financially everything that they need to care for, including their pets. So we're seeing more animals come in, cost of care go up and adoptions are actually going down because everyone has to sort of consider, 'What can I afford right now?'"
Contrary to common misconception, this is not a problem brought on by the pandemic. In fact, shelter adoptions saw a significant increase during that period.
"There have actually been national studies done by the ASPCA," Shahly said, "that actually, sort of, you know, did all those numbers, crunched all that data, and was like, 'Okay, animals that went to homes during the pandemic, are they being returned?' Because they're going back to work, they have maybe less free time. That's really not the case. We're seeing animals that were adopted during that time are beloved members of the family, just like any other time you would adopt a pet. Families are just struggling right now, a lot of [them] financially."
It's a conversation that never gets any easier to talk about. Luckily, there is at least one reason to celebrate — Tuesday, Jan. 24 is National Change a Pet's Life Day!
This day is meant to raise awareness about the current climate and promote shelter assistance, whether that be through adopting, volunteering, fostering, donating and more.
"We are completely and 100% donor funded," Shahly said about the Humane Society of West Michigan. "So any donations that your viewers want to make would make a huge difference in every pet's life that stays here. It's about $30 a day to care for an animal. So obviously that adds up really fast when you have over 100 animals in your care. We have a lot of small animals too. We've got rabbits, guinea pigs [and] a gerbil right now. We've seen ferrets and all sorts of other pets come through. So if you're thinking about adopting, there's really somebody for everybody here.”
In February, both the Bissell Pet Foundation and Humane Society of West Michigan will host events to encourage adopting.
Brittany Schlacter, marketing and public relations specialist with the Bissell Pet Foundation, said, "Right here in Michigan, we're going to be hosting a special Empty the Shelter's event where you can adopt a pet [and] we can get pets into homes for $50 or less. So that's going to be Feb. 9–15."
Shahly added, "We're also going to be running, during the entire month of February, an adoption special for our longer-stay pets, so pets that have been in the shelter for 30 days or more, which are then considered at that point, like, they've been with us for a month. They've been here for a while. We want to get them into a loving home. So any animal that's been here 30 days or longer will be fee waived to adopt. They can go home at no charge. We're really excited about that.”
Here are a few things you can do to observe National Change a Pet's Life Day:
- Adopt: Consider adding a furry friend to your family. Many pets, breeds and personalities are available.
- Foster: Fostering a pet helps open up space at local animal shelters. Fostering with the Humane Society of West Michigan is free of charge and includes pet food, toys, medical care and more.
- Volunteer: There is always room for more volunteers who can help socialize pets and help run special events, among other tasks.
- Donate: Make a one-time contribution or set up a monthly gift to the BISSELL Pet Foundation.
- Help Lost Pets: Submit a found report if you encounter a lost pet and have them scanned for a microchip. House the pet for at least a 48-hour period to reunite it with its owners before taking it to a shelter.
- Share: Share posts about adoptable pets on social media, including pleas for help from local animal shelters or the BISSELL Pet Foundation.