Humane Society
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What is it?
- The Humane Society is a group/organization who's goal is to stop animal cruelty through rescue, response, sanctuary work and hands-on animal care services
Multiple animals having to share kennels
Staffing issues causing dirty living environments
COVID-19 Affect
- In 2020, the Coronavirus Pandemic affected many things in our day to day lives, but there are even more people, places, and things it affected than we all realize. Many of these things are still affecting us today and we are still currently having to live with them without the realization they are even there. Animal shelters across the nation are experiencing a severe overpopulation in the amount of animals being turned in or surrendered by their owners.
- Shelters have received more adoptions during the pandemic in the year 2020, than they had received any previous year according to an interview with Clowee Wisenburg fromTAPS in Pekin, IL. While many would look at these adoption rates as a positive thing happening in our society, it fell back drastically and caused a much larger issue once the stay at home order was lifted. Families and individuals started to return to school or work and began to gain a more normal lifestyle again. Thus meaning they either do not have the time or the funds to properly care for the animal they adopted during quarantine, and in return the animal is turned back around and surrendered back to the shelter.
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there are many different reasonings as to individuals surrendering but a primary reason being financial instability - to help adoption rates:
- put a cost cap on animal costs
- lowering the cost of vet bills
- lowering cost of animal care products and food
Too many animals, not enough space
Animals going to the shelter do not only influence the shelter itself but, also the animal that someone is surrendering
According to USA Today, ``It costs US taxpayers approximately $2 billion each year to round up, house, kill and dispose of homeless animals” (How You Can Reduce the Animal Overpopulation). https://worldanimalfoundation.org/advocate/companion-animals/params/post/1275970/animal-overpopulation-crisis
- while adoption is would be the best route to help the animals permanently, fostering is also a very beneficial option to help the animals as well
Fostering
What is Fostering?
Fostering is an easy, direct and short-term way to make a lifetime of difference. It simply means temporarily opening your home to pets in need and giving them love and care while they wait to be adopted. Best Friends (and some shelters) can provide everything you need, including food, supplies, support and medical care.
Benefits of Fostering:
- Whether a shelter is crowded or not, each animal in their care requires time and resources that could be stretched further if those animals were in foster homes. Foster caregivers help animal shelters and rescues so much!
- When you foster animals, you are helping to save lives. Animals in your care can go on to loving homes and animal shelters have more space and resources to help even more animals in need.
- many of the animals require TLC to have the best possible chance of finding an adopter. When you foster, you help give them the space, experiences and resources they need when they go to new homes.
Complications of Fostering:
- You may not be able to foster the animal because of the requirements to do so.
- You may not know the animals background.
- You may experience an attachment to the animal though you cannot adopt them so you could get heartbroken.
- When you foster them the animal might not have been in a proper home before so they could become aggressive out of nowhere and damage your home.
Requirements for fostering an animal in Illinois:
- Must be 21 years of age
- Have a license and transportation for the animal in case of emergency or to pick up and drop off animal
- Be able to isolate the animal from your other pets if needed
- Have all other pets in home spayed or neutered
- Each shelter may change or add requirements in Illinois
