A SPCA program that works in conjunction with other support agencies provides temporary adaptations for pets whose owners are affected by the violence of the intimate couple.
Paws and Support is a free program that finds foment for pets, while its owners seek “short -term hospital treatment or transition outside domestic violence.”
“We are aware that pets can be used, in a corrosive way, to keep people who stay in an insecure situation,” said Heather Woodin, head of animal operations of the SPCA. “Therefore, it is important that we have a program for people who flee from a situation to take their pet to a safe place.”
Woodin said people need to know that their pet is safe during a crisis and that they can gather when the time is correct.
With Increase gender violence, he said it is important to have these programs available.. The shelters for women, for example, often do not allow pets.
The victims of violence of the intimate couple always move to the upper part of the list of reception, Woodin said.
Pets in the program are placed in a host house once they are cleanly cleaned, he said. No information about the owner is shared or why the pet is in the program.
The host houses only know the needs of the animal. The location and identity of the parenting house are also confidential.
Volunteers who encourage these pets go through training and must comply with strict rules of confidentiality, Woodin said.
Pet owners must communicate with a support agency. The agency then contacts the SPCA in its name.
Nicole McGowan works for the SPCA in Dartmouth. She has encouraged an animal through the program.
“It is quite gratifying to take an animal, and you are basically taking care of children,” McGowan said. “You are treating them like … yours for a period of time.”
She said it is satisfactory to help a community member and her pet, she said. The shelter can be quite stressful for a pet that is used to being in a home with its owner.
“They don’t understand why they are there [at the shelter] Where was your people, “he said.
Adoptive parents know that pets will always be returned to the owners as soon as they are in a safe place, McGowan said. The animal under her care was with her for about six weeks.
Woodin said there is no time limit when someone can have a pet in the program. The average time of a pet is in a host house is 30 days.
The program is financed only through donations. There is no cost for pet owners who use the program.
People who foster pets have all articles, such as food and bedding, covered with donations.
There is a cost to manage the program, Woodin said. But she said that the cost of not having the program exceeds it.
For any person affected by family or intimate couple, there is support available through Crisis lines and local support services. If you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, call 911.
