Evictions: Should We Be Worried about Pets?

There have been a lot of stories in the news lately about how we should be worried about the upcoming eviction situation that may be happening across the country. The fear is that we are going to be inundated with requests for help with pets as their owners are displaced.

With that in mind, when I saw the HASS Pet Eviction Calculator, I got really excited. I love a calculator that can help drive our strategic planning. I ran through several scenarios and the numbers were extremely high. I personally think they are higher than what we will be faced with.

One factor the calculator doesn’t take into account is that quite a low percentage of cats placed actually come through the shelter. Most cats are placed through friends and family or left to the support of the community.

Another factor is that evictions take a lot of time. So it isn’t like everyone will be evicted on the same day. Also, the rate at which people are saving money is higher than ever, so landlords may be willing to negotiate terms that work for both parties rather than jumping right to eviction. It takes time and money to find a new tenant and refresh an apartment.

So, when looking at the numbers in the calculator and how it would impact your individual program, I would drop the number by a minimum of 75%. We also have so many virtual adoption programs that keep cats outside of our brick-and-mortar facilities that the demands on our programs may even be less.

So far this year, cat intakes are on the same level as 2019 in general. Of course, different areas/regions may be experiencing different things. I do believe that the effects of evictions are worth our consideration, but when it comes to cats, I am much more concerned about access to care challenges than I am about eviction-related surrenders. In the long run, looking at access to care, with a primary focus on spay/neuter, will be the best for our community cats.