pet connection

As part of my investigation into resources to assist pet owners facing foreclosure or other financial or housing crises, I tried to find shelters and animal control agencies who had achieved success with programs designed to prevent splitting up people and their pets, and to help the animals when that wasn’t possible.

Traci Jennings is President of the Humane Society of Stanislaus County, an area of California that’s facing a very large foreclosure problem. She’d been quoted several months earlier in an Associated Press article about the increasing foreclosure problem and how it was affecting pets, so I emailed her to ask how that situation was at the present time, and what her organization had done to help people and animals in need. This is the entire text of our correspondence, with only her personal contact information and salutations removed.

Christie Keith, via email:

I’m the pet columnist from the San Francisco Chronicle website, SFGate.com, and I’m writing about things pet owners facing foreclosure can do to keep from losing their pets. Can you tell me if your shelter has any programs in place to assist pet owners who need assistance in finding pet-friendly housing, temporary shelter/fostering, or anything along those lines?

Traci Jennings, President, Humane Society of Stanislaus County, via email:

We maintain a pet friendly housing list but by the time these people call us they have already made the decision to dump their animals.

Sadly, most of these pet owners wait until the last-minute and don’t bother seeking pet-friendly housing. I get calls every day from people trying to dump off their animals; some call as they are walking out the door.

I polled a number of farmers and ranchers and they are seeing a commensurate rise in animals dumped in the country. When I was interviewed by the Associate Press, the problem was bad, but lately it has been much worse.

The local animal control agency does not track reason for surrender With their euthanasia rates for cats well over 85% and dogs over 50%, they have only recently been willing to admit there is a problem.

I currently am fostering a litter of terrier mixes that a woman tried to toss out on Highway 132. I recently adopted out a dog that nearly starved to death when she was abandoned inside a foreclosed home. Our cat rescue partners have reported dozens of cats dumped into monitored feral colonies. The problem is not housing, it’s the owners. I know of many foreclosure people who put time and effort into locating a new pet-friendly residence.

I am originally from Seattle and lived in the Bay Area for some time, so I still find it incomprehensible the way animals are treated in the Central Valley. Our Humane Society is the only group trying to help, but the problem is absolutely staggering.

Feel free to call me if you need any more information.

Christie Keith, via email:

Traci, I’m wondering, though, and this is the thrust of my piece… you say they are dumping their pets, but what positive steps do you feel can be taken to give them other options at an earlier stage? If you could get to them, say, a month earlier, what would you encourage them to do rather than abandon their pets or bring them to the shelter?

Traci Jennings, via email:

Most people won’t reveal that they are being foreclosed on. There is a great deal of stigma attached to losing your home in such a manner.

Responsible pet owners will search for pet-friendly housing and do. By the time they call us the bond is broken and they are just looking for a dumping ground.

I know it sounds a bit harsh, but people signed the loan papers, bought the houses, took the equity, and now paint themselves as victims. When they call me they usually say something like, “If you don’t take Fluffy, I will be forced to take her to the pound.” Nobody is forcing them except themselves. We have resources and referrals, but relatively few make even the slightest effort.

No matter how early they get the message, it is still up to them to act on it.

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