Published February 9, 2011
The MSPCA has had a unique view of the economic downturn.
Since 2007, the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has seen a dramatic shift toward financial constraints as a primary reason people give up pets.
In 2007, 111 animals were surrendered to the Boston shelter due to owner cost concerns, spokesman Brian Adams told me. In 2010, that figure more than doubled — to 258. Across the MSPCA’s four shelters, the trend was similar: 278 animals surrendered due to cost concerns in 2007; 456 in 2010.
The organization keeps detailed records about why owners give up their animals, including moving to housing that isn’t pet-friendly, divorce and allergies. But in 2008, with the recession first striking, the MSPCA felt compelled to create a new category: foreclosure.
Full Pooch Disclosure: A family member's new dog, a 4-year-old Border Collie/German Shepherd mix, was surrendered to the MSPCA following a foreclosure.
“Prior to 2008, we would hear that people were being foreclosed on, but it was very rare,” Adams said. “However, in 2008, much like the entire nation, foreclosures became much more prominent, and people started citing foreclosure to us more, at which point we decided, ‘We need to add a category for this.’ ”
In 2008, 27 animals were surrendered to the Boston center specifically because of foreclosure. The last two years saw 44 more animals surrendered to the city shelter for that reason.
Despite the shift toward cost-driven surrenders, the MSPCA says it’s caring for roughly the same number of animals over the past few years.
Surrenders due to financial concerns present specific challenges for the MSPCA. Allergy information provided to owners, for example, can help keep an animal in the home. For financial surrenders, the options are limited. Adams said certain low-cost services can help pet owners get over “small humps,” but a major decrease in an owner’s finances is harder to combat.
Further, many animals surrendered to the MSPCA for financial concerns require “extra care,” Adams said, perhaps to make up for a surgery cash-strapped owners could not provide.
It’s an emotional situation that’s become more common for the shelter.
“The one constant that comes with surrenders, especially for foreclosure or financial concerns, is you’re dealing with people who, on a very gut level, do show a sense of shame as if they have not been able to provide for this animal that they love very much,” Adams said.
The MSPCA, which also cares for thousands of stray animals every year, has felt the pinch itself. In 2008, its private-supported endowment lost nearly 26 percent, or more than $11 million, which led to the closure of shelters in Brockton, Martha’s Vineyard and Springfield. Adams said the organization worked with entities in those communities to “ensure animal welfare programs would continue.”