Overview of the Current and Potential Effects of COVID-19 on U.S. Animal Shelters

Szydlowski, Michelle; Gragg, Chelsea

doi:10.21467/preprints.157

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…In the first months of COVID-19 pandemic, animal shelters globally experienced an increase in adoption and foster rates [ 20 ], however, in the survey only two respondents re-homed their cat (one permanently). It may be that people who disposed their cat were not inclined to fill out a survey.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cat owners’ perception on having a pet cat during the COVID-19 pandemic

et al. 2021

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Restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic may affect the lives of pet animals. We aimed to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the welfare of pet cats across countries, as well as the owners’ experience in relation to their cat(s). An online survey containing 21 questions was distributed internationally. Questions were related to information about the cat and its behaviour and health, changes in the household due to the pandemic, and how the owner related to the cat. The survey was completed by 324 respondents from 25 different countries. The survey showed that keeping pet cats during the COVID-19 pandemic did not create problems for the owners, except some difficulties in acquiring veterinary care. The majority (67.3%) of respondents reported no changes in their cats’ behaviour. When behavioural changes were reported, they were mostly of a positive nature. Owners who took more measures in relation to the cat to prevent the spread of the virus, e.g., reduced contact, were 1.8 times more likely to report changes in the behaviour of their cats but also 3.8 times more likely to report difficulties related to the care of the cat during the pandemic. Two-third of the respondents indicated a reduction of their own psychological tensions due to having a cat during the pandemic. We concluded that the welfare of pet cats, as reported by the owners, was not adversely affected by the pandemic and the human-cat interaction had positive effects on the owners during the lockdown.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cat owners’ perception on having a pet cat during the COVID-19 pandemic

et al. 2021

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“…Shelters could also have implemented changes that were not captured by this survey. For example, some shelters have suggested that conducting meet-and-greets with prospective adopters in the carpark, rather than the shelter environment, was beneficial for long-term animals with poor kennel behavior as it potentially increased their chances of adoption [ 37 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Animal Shelters’ Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Pilot Survey of 14 Shelters in the Northeastern United States

Powell

Houlihan

Stone

et al. 2021

Animals

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Anecdotal reports indicate that many animal shelters experienced increased adoption and foster care rates during the COVID-19 pandemic, yet peer-reviewed evidence is lacking. In this pilot survey of 14 animal shelters in the Northeastern United States, we aimed to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on animal intakes, foster care and five outcome types and describe operational changes reported by shelters in response to COVID-19. Paired sample t-tests and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests were used to compare intake, adoption, euthanasia and foster care rates and numbers between March–June 2019 and 2020. The number of dogs and cats that entered shelters was significantly lower during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with the same months of 2019 (t = 3.41, p = 0.01, t = 2.69, p = 0.02). Although the overall rate of adoption and euthanasia did not differ, the numbers adopted and euthanized decreased significantly for both dogs and cats, reflecting the significantly decreased intake. We also found significant variability between shelters. During the pandemic, several shelters sought to expand their foster care networks through operational changes (n = 6) and statements made to the public (n = 7). However, the proportion of dogs and cats housed in foster care did not differ between March–June 2019 and 2020 in our sample. Our findings offer preliminary insights regarding the impact of a worldwide pandemic on the functioning of animal shelters.

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“…Animal shelters that were not obligated to accept domestic rabbits may have declined new intakes to minimize disease spread in shelter and to protect resident rabbits, resulting in a decrease in rabbit intakes. Furthermore, it has been reported in Canada and the US that the COVID-19 pandemic may have decreased overall animal intakes [ 3 , 30 , 31 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Rabbits that entered the shelter in 2020 and 2021 experienced a shorter LOS than rabbits that entered the shelter in 2017, 2018, and 2019 ( Fig 4 ). The reduced LOS in 2020 and 2021 might be attributed to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on public interest in animal adoptions [ 31 , 34 ]. For example, Morgan and colleagues [ 34 ] surveyed a national pet adoption website in Isarel and found an increased interest in dog adoptions and adoption rate and a decrease in LOS as social isolation measures tightened during the pandemic.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rabbit intakes and predictors of their length of stay in animal shelters in British Columbia, Canada

U.,

Hou,

Protopopova

2024

PLoS ONE

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Domestic rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) are the fourth most common species admitted to the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (BC SPCA) shelter system. However, shelter data analysis has largely focused on cats and dogs and little is known about the population dynamics of rabbits in shelters. We analyzed five years of rabbit records (n = 1567) at the BC SPCA to identify trends in intake and predictors of length of stay (LOS) of rabbits. The majority of rabbits were surrendered by their owners (40.2%), with most rabbits being surrendered for human-related reasons (96.9%). Overall, rabbit intakes decreased over the study period. When analyzing by month of intake, rabbit intakes were found to be the highest in May. Most rabbits in our data were adults (46.7%), non-brachycephalic (66.7%), erect-eared (82.5%), short-furred (76.2%), and subsequently adopted (80.3%). The median LOS of rabbits was 29 days, highlighting the pressing need to improve their time to adoption. A linear model was constructed to identify predictors of LOS of adopted rabbits (n = 1203) and revealed that intake year, intake month, source of intake, age, cephalic type, and breed size significantly predicted time to adoption for rabbits (F(37, 1165) = 7.95, p < 2.2e-16, adjusted R2 = 0.18). These findings help characterize shelter population dynamics for rabbits, shed light on the challenges associated with unwanted rabbits, and offer a foundation for animal shelters to design programs and marketing strategies tailored to reduce LOS of rabbits with particular characteristics. Shelter rabbits represent an understudied population and our study highlights the importance of further research in companion rabbits.

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Overview of the Current and Potential Effects of COVID-19 on U.S. Animal Shelters

Cited by 7 publications

References 10 publications

Cat owners’ perception on having a pet cat during the COVID-19 pandemic

Cat owners’ perception on having a pet cat during the COVID-19 pandemic

Animal Shelters’ Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Pilot Survey of 14 Shelters in the Northeastern United States

Rabbit intakes and predictors of their length of stay in animal shelters in British Columbia, Canada

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