Since the outbreak of COVID-19, pet adoption and fostering agencies have seen a huge uptick in individuals looking to bring a furry friend into their homes.

Many of Toronto’s top pet adoption agencies have been overrun with applications and inquiries about adoption or fostering and many have had to suspend their operations.

The issue is that most of these agencies are not able to conduct business as usual, due to the ongoing state of emergency and social distancing laws.

Many animals that would normally be rescued from homelessness are unable to be retrieved by the agencies. Also, plenty of animals who have been rescued are not receiving proper veterinarian services that are necessary in order to ensure they are safe for adoption.

Toronto based agency, Adopt-A-Dog Save-A-Life decided to suspend their adoption services until Toronto Public Health officials lift the state of emergency.

Working with many animals who suffer from behavioural or medical challenges, this rescue agency doesn’t feel that adoptions can be carried out safely under the COVID-19 protection laws.

“Where the problem occurs is actually having applicants meet the foster dog. Typically we have people meet the dog in the foster home, in a relaxed setting where they can interact with the dog and talk to the foster parents and learn their routine or special needs that that dog has,” said Marianne, one of Adopt-A-Dog’s staff volunteers.

This agency does not have a set office or shelter, so most of their dogs live in foster homes throughout their adoption process.

“All of our dogs are safe, none of them are at risk of being euthanized,” added Marianne.

This is not an option for shelters like the Toronto Humane Society whose operations have converted to a digital system to combat issues brought on by COVID-19.

“One incredible way that the public has been offering support right now is through our foster programs. Since the closure we’ve been able to place 130 animals into foster homes,” said Hannah Sotropa, public relations specialist at the Toronto Humane Society.

 

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Helping our community in difficult times. Despite the challenges posed by this pandemic, we remain committed to supporting our community and helping those in need. … Thanks to a wave of donations from our supporters, our food bank not only continued on after our closure, but was expanded. We have so far done large drop offs at: North York Harvest Food Bank, Daily Bread Food Bank, Humane Society of Durham Region, North York Harvest food bank, PWA Toronto, Rescue Chow, Six Nations Animal Control, The Junction Shelter, St. James community centre, VCA Canada, Yonge Street Mission, and various colony caretakers. … Fighting the spread of the virus has come at a cost for many people. It is our hope that by continuing to expand on our Pet Food Bank, we will provide pet owners with a means to care for and stay with their pets during such difficult times. … We are also working on ways to make a difference that go beyond our normal services. For example, we recently packed a van full of medical grade PPE and drove it over to St. Michael’s Hospital to donate. Like our Food Bank, this was made possible by donations, specifically, those individuals who dedicated their time sewing hand-made masks for our shelter workers and volunteers. … While things are certainly different out there, it is important to never lose sight of what’s important. For us, that’s improving the lives of animals. No matter what happens over the coming months, we will do our best to adapt, innovate, and press on with our mission. . . . . . . . . #ths #torontohumanesociety #covid_19 #staysafe #shelter #rescueanimals #helpinganimals #donations #donation #donate

A post shared by Toronto Humane Society (@toronto_humane_society) on Apr 23, 2020 at 7:00am PDT

Adapting to social distancing measures, the Humane Society and other rescue organizations like Redemption Paws are virtually connecting animals with foster and adopted parents via emails and virtual meet and greets.

If someone is chosen to adopt or foster one of these pets, new systems have been put into place so they can safely retrieve their pets and the resources supplied by the shelter.

“Adopting during this time does have its pros, but there are also cons,” said Sotropa. New adopters are finding it hard to socialize their animals, but they are also finding that the presence of an animal provides a positive and healthy regimen for new owners.

Although this time has proven difficult for shelter and adoption agencies to run their day-to-day operations, it doesn’t mean that the need for foster parents and adopters is any less.

“Right now is the time. There are a lot of animals out there in need, whether they’re shelter animals or otherwise. People are really coming forward, more likely to do so just because of the nature of this environment,” said Sotropa.