People facing adverse conditions need help for their pets!
Pets play an important role in their guardians’ lives and provide emotional support and companionship. For many, the bond with their pet may be the strongest in their life, and these bonds become even more important in times of crisis, when they need support the most. Unfortunately, people can face adverse conditions during their life that make it difficult or impossible for them to take care of their pet themselves – they may face homelessness or illness, be seeking help with recovery or they may be fleeing interpersonal violence.
One of the leading reason community members need to access our Urgent Foster Care program is that they are fleeing situations of domestic violence. In 2016, over 93,000 Canadians reported to the police having been victims of IPV. Of these, 79% were women. Currently, few Toronto-area Violence Against Women shelters allow pets. According to a recent University of Windsor study, nearly 90% of women staying at the surveyed VAW shelters said that their partner also abused their pet with over ¾ incidents occurring in the presence of the woman and/or her children as a method to coerce, control and humiliate. In IPV, power and control are tactics that gain and sustain abuse. Threats to animals and children may be equally effective where the animal becomes a pawn. Perpetrators may minimize and blame the woman for forcing them to hurt the animal. Some perpetrators may even “gift” the pet as an attempt to reconcile or as an act of apologizing, however ultimately, they may further serve as a method of control and manipulation. Sadly 56% of these women reported that they delayed leaving an abusive relationship due to fear for their pet’s safety. The pet guardians seeking the help they need may fear that, in this case, they have no choice but to either stay or surrender their companion to an animal shelter. This would mean permanently saying good-bye to their four-legged best friend during an already difficult time. Fortunately, we offer another solutions.
The Urgent Foster Care program keeps families together
Toronto Humane Society’s Urgent Foster Care program provides an alternative to surrender for pet guardians in need. For any community member facing adverse conditions, we provide an immediate temporary foster home for their pet(s) for up to one year while the guardian seeks the help they require.
While in foster care, the animal receives everything they need to thrive: Food, medicine, veterinary care, and love and affection from the volunteer foster parent. When the guardian is able to take care of their pet again, the family is reunited.
For this program, we are partnered with local homeless and women’s shelters, and other local foundations. When these partner organizations come across a client who may be a good candidate for our Urgent Foster Care program, they refer the client to us and we begin the intake process for their pets.
We also accept pets of guardians from the wider community who approach us in need of help. For example, we intake many pets whose guardians first sought help through our Pet Parent Support Network, a knowledge hub we operate to provide each pet guardian with personalized information and support. Unlike similar programs in Ontario, we don’t require a third-party referral, so pet guardians in crisis can simply call us in the few safe minutes they have.
In August 2021 we launched our Urgent Care Manual. This document outlines everything that other agencies need to know in order to create a successful urgent care program of their own, therefore providing more help across the continent. We’re pleased to say that the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness, the largest national research institute devoted to homelessness, has published the manual on their website, “Homeless Hub,” as an essential resource!
