New Pets Came With the Pandemic. What Now?

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Americans welcomed a lot of pets to their homes during the Covid pandemic, according to several surveys.

Forty-five percent of households owned a dog in 2020, up 7 percent from 2016, says the American Veterinary Medical Association. More than 23 million households adopted a pet during the pandemic, according the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Why did people gravitate towards dogs and cats as we grappled with a public health crisis not seen in 100 years?

One obvious factor was to deal with loneliness. Lockdowns and work-from-home can make you feel isolated. Pets provide companionship and take your mind off difficult times.

Another possible reason is social interaction. The World Economic Forum suggests that even during the Covid lockdowns, people still walked their dogs, offering a chance to chat with others outside while keeping their distance.

To be fair, some have challenged the much-reported “Pandemic Pet Boom,” saying the evidence relies on surveys and anecdotes, not transactional data. They also note the difficulty to adopt during the pandemic. (Read an example of that viewpoint here.)

Now that the pandemic seems to be waning, you may have heard how animal shelters are experiencing an uptick in people surrendering their dogs and cats because they can’t take care of them anymore. Shelters are struggling with funding, staffing and space. (Shelters accounted for roughly 40 percent of where people got their pets in 2020.)

Again, there’s a debate about that, too. Is it truly a “pandemic pet crisis?” Or are shelters just overwhelmed as life returns to normal levels of activity?

A poll by the ASPCA on pandemic pets found:

“The vast majority of these households still have that pet in the home—90 percent for dogs and 85 percent for cats—and are not considering rehoming their pet in the near future. Despite alarmist headlines tied to regional reports of a surge in owner surrenders, this trend is not currently evident on a national level with many organizations simply seeing a return to pre-pandemic operations and intake.”

We at Pugpalooza hope people are keeping the new cats and dogs they acquired during the last two years. Pets provided us comfort in a troubling time – and promise to make the good times even better.

Until next time,

Hugs and Pug Kisses,

Candy

Sources and Links:

Americans adopted millions of dogs during the coronavirus pandemic. Now what do we do with them? – The Washington Post

Pet population still on the rise, with fewer pets per household | American Veterinary Medical Association (avma.org)

New ASPCA Survey Shows Overwhelming Majority of Dogs and Cats Acquired During the Pandemic Are Still in Their Homes | ASPCA

Spending time with pets during lockdown improved our mental health | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)

Pet Adoption Soared During The Pandemic. But Now, Shelters Report Overcrowding : NPR

In California, dogs fill shelters as pandemic lockdowns ease | Reuters

Predicted pandemic pet crisis mostly sidestepped Bay Area (mercurynews.com)

The COVID-19 pet adoption boom: Did it really happen? (dvm360.com)