Animal Shelters Are Crowded As High Costs Squeeze Pet Owners

New York City’s largest animal shelter deed a sad milestone.

Rocky, an 11-year-old elder canine surrendered by his owner, became nan 1,000th animal astatine nan Animal Care Centers of New York City, which announced connected July 18 that its 3 shelters stopped accepting dogs, cats, bunnies and different critters, isolated from successful emergencies.

The graying pup stood successful a cage successful a serene broadside agency wrong nan Brooklyn location — VIP curen considering hundreds of different dogs astatine nan shelter were successful tight quarters that were ne'er intended to beryllium overflowing.

“We’re successful nan business to attraction for animals that travel to us, and we want to thief group pinch their pets, but erstwhile we person 1,000 animals to attraction for and a capacity to location them that doesn’t meet that need, we’re successful a spot of a difficult situation,” ACC President and CEO Risa Weinstock told NBC News.

Even pinch nan shelter practically bursting astatine nan seams, nan unit made exceptions. Weinstock said aft they made nan announcement to suspend intakes, 200 animals were accepted into their shelters that were either a nationalist information consequence aliases sent by metropolis agencies. The business is truthful dire that New York City stepped successful Friday pinch $1 cardinal to thief ACC.

“But we are asking nan nationalist to activity pinch america to slow down what is coming in,” Weinstock said.

As nan costs of surviving and pet attraction rises, animal shelters crossed nan state are astatine captious capacity dealing pinch an influx of surrendered pets, oftentimes owed to nan value tag associated pinch their care. An estimated 5.8 cardinal animals filled up accommodation past year, according to nan nonprofit Shelter Animals Count’s nationalist database.

While location was a 1% alteration successful shelter intakes from 2023 to 2024, nan levels stay high. In 2019, 55% of shelter dogs had “live outcomes,” meaning they were adopted aliases returned to their owner. That number dropped to 50% successful 2024, pinch an estimated 334,000 canines being euthanized.

A canine disposable for take astatine an animal shelter successful New York successful 2023.Stephanie Keith / Bloomberg via Getty Images

“It’s been a reliable respective years for animal shelters,” said Tori Fugate, nan group’s communications director.

In Arizona, animal shelter operators are finding pets abandoned successful parking tons aliases connected nan broadside of nan road. In Virginia, an over-capacity shelter has taken to societal media to telephone for adoptions urgently. And successful Tennessee, 1 shelter said it is “drowning” successful rescue dogs, forced to stack kennels connected apical of each different to supply space.

The rise successful nan costs of living and a shortage of affordable housing are forcing galore pet owners successful America into tough circumstances, according to Fugate.

The value of pet attraction has risen dramatically. A Bank of America Institute report recovered that since 2019, prices of services for illustration veterinary attraction and grooming person gone up 42%, pinch nan costs of equipment for illustration nutrient and treats surging 22%. Pet insurance is expensive, too.

That has led pet owners to propulsion backmost connected pet-related transactions: Card spending astatine pet stores dropped by 4% from April 2024 to this April, while spending astatine vets dropped 1% during nan aforesaid period.

“The main logic for pet surrender is, ‘I can’t spend it.’ Vet attraction is expensive, nutrient is expensive, I mean, conscionable quality costs of surviving is expensive,” Weinstock said.

Shelters are moving to supply caller resources to seduce pet owners to reconsider aliases hold surrendering their pets. The ACC successful New York provides free food, vaccine clinics and veterinarian vouchers — “anything we tin do to thief you support your pet,” Weinstock said.

“Even if it’s conscionable 1 animal, 1 person’s dog, who we said, ‘If we springiness you nutrient for a period and you tin salary your electricity, would that thief you return your canine aliases your feline aliases your rabbit home?’ and they opportunity yes, and they locomotion disconnected pinch their kids and they’re crying because we were capable to support that pet pinch them, that’s a bully day,” she added.

Shelter Animals Count besides recovered that nan timeline for animals successful these accommodation is changing.

“The magnitude of stay, truthful nan clip that animals are spending successful nan shelter, is expanding twelvemonth complete year,” Fugate told NBC News.

“We tin person a canine enactment here, a cat, a guinea pig, a rabbit, could beryllium 3 days, and it could beryllium complete a year,” Weinstock said.

Weinstock said euthanasia remains nan “last, last, past choice.”

“Our extremity is if there’s thing incorrect pinch them behaviorally aliases medically, and they’re not a information risk, they’re going to enactment here, and we’re going to marketplace them each chance we get,” she said.

The solution to trim nan overpopulation of returned animals isn’t an easy one. Weinstock said it requires nan organization to measurement up and foster pets — but besides authorities resources to reside nan guidelines causes of pets being surrendered.

On Friday, New York Mayor Eric Adams announced nan metropolis would beryllium investing $1 cardinal into nan ACC.

“In truthful galore ways, our pets attraction for america and our loved ones, and it’s important that we attraction for them, too,” Adams said successful a news release.

The mayor, who is up for re-election this year, encouraged New Yorkers to adopt from nan ACC and said nan backing is intended to prosecute 14 much unit members for their locations and thief pinch their day-to-day needs.

For those who want to help, “people could foster, group could donate, they could volunteer, they tin network, they tin amplify our message,” Weinstock said. But she added that her squad is meant to beryllium a assets to nan organization during difficult times, not a solution to nan larger issues astatine hand.

“People who bring their animals are retired of options,” Weinstock said. “They’re not retired of compassion.”