‘Lockdown Pets’ Are Being Abandoned At Animal Shelters As COVID-19 Restrictions Ease

Animal rescue shelters are reporting that the number of pet surrenders has quadrupled in recent months as lockdown restrictions ease and people return to work.

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Animal rescue shelters across the country are reporting a sharp increase in pet surrenders, with numbers having doubled or even quadrupled in recent months.

Zeus' Rescues, in New Orleans, are currently turning away 10 to 15 animals a day. "I have never seen numbers this high", s​ays Rescue Director Michelle Ingram. "Our number of pet surrenders have quadrupled."

Similarly, Animal Care Centers (ACC) of New York City has reported nearly 1,400 animal surrenders in June, compared to 631 in February.  

ACC says that on average, 21 pets were brought in each day in February, but that number rose to 47 in June. It is feared that the average will soar to between 60 and 80 pets a day throughout the summer.

‘Lockdown Pets’

The alarming increase marks a complete turnaround in fortunes for animal adoptions. According to Shelter Animals Count, some 26,000 more animals were adopted last year in the U.S. than in 2019. 

This dramatic rise in adoptions was largely due to the introduction of lockdown restrictions across the country.

Dogs in particular proved popular, as "they add a lot of structure to your day when you're working from home", said Katy Hansen, a spokeswoman for ACC.

At one point during the lockdown, ACC had just 125 animals on its books. Now, it directly cares for 633, with volunteers fostering hundreds more. 

 This turnaround has coincided with the recent lifting of lockdown measures, as more people return to work. Job losses caused by the pandemic have played a part too, as owners can no longer afford to care for their pets. 

The problem has also been made worse by parents who rushed to buy pets during the lockdown. Madeleine Bernstein, of Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said that "we have seen a lot of parents who adopted for their children, and now their kids are back to doing things, so animals are coming back, as well".  

At Wags and Walks in Los Angeles, inquiries for pet surrenders have doubled since pre-pandemic levels, and the adoption center is now back to full capacity, while a similar trend is being reported by the Humane Society of Dallas County.  

If you’re in the US and would like to foster or adopt a companion animal, you can find your local shelter here.


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