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Much of that has slowed down due to those shelters also being full.
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Shelters in Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana usually transport many of their animals to other states, typically in the northern part of the U.S., that have a lower supply of animals. are typical during kitten season, but this year the gap is slightly wider, leading to a higher shelter population. Gaps in outcomes and intakes at animal shelters in the U.S. “In order to prepare for the possibility of an influx of pets from these neighboring shelters, we have arranged several transports to help decrease our population.” “As all of us in southeast Louisiana assess the storm damage, CAA is thankful that our region was spared the worst of it,” Jackson said. “We know that a lot of the lower-income housing environments do not accept pets that are larger in size, so we're receiving a lot of pets over 25, 30, 50 pounds.”Īfter Hurricane Ida made landfall in southeast Louisiana in late August, the shelter also expected animals to come in from other shelters in the area that were affected by the storm as well as from local animal control services. “We would assume that these are COVID-related,” said Emily Jackson, Companion Animal Alliance’s communications director. “It’s become like this superstorm where we have more animals coming, less animals leaving,” Makena Yarbrough, the senior regional director of programs at Best Friends, said.Ĭompanion Animal Alliance in Baton Rouge has found that about half of their intake during the surge came from owners surrendering their pets due to moving challenges - often into lower-income housing or being evicted. While intake is still lower than it was in 2019, Best Friends found that more animals have entered the shelters than left them, which is leading to the high shelter population. Data from 24PetWatch and analyzed by Best Friends Animal Society shows that shelter intake of animals has been higher this year than in 2020. The level of overcrowding at these shelters, however, rarely rises to the level it is at now. It’s also not unusual for shelters to take in a lot of animals during the summer months because that’s when puppies and kittens are born. High poverty levels also mean people cannot afford to take care of their pets, or their housing situations do not allow for any. Ally Leerink (left) considered adopting a puppy after she and Amanda Oates (center) watched Beatrice Garcia (right) pick up a kitten at Metro Animal Shelter in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.Īnimal shelters in the Gulf South tend to have a lot of animals in general, partly due to the lack of access to veterinary care and spaying and neutering - especially in rural areas.