Preventing pet relinquishment at animal shelters in Los Angeles: Human risk factors and social safety net services

One potential way to reduce shelter euthanasia is to decrease relinquishment by keeping pets in their homes when possible. To learn about people who relinquish their pets, we conducted a study of people relinquishing to a municipal animal shelter in Los Angeles, CA. Our study had 166 cases intending to relinquish and 125 controls.  Overall, respondents were primarily Spanish speaking (60%) with a high school diploma or less. 84% made less than $30,000 annually but only 32.5% were on public assistance. 72% were not aware of services available to them to help them keep their pets. 96% reported that something had changed in their household that led to the decision to relinquish, primarily related to costs. We found relinquishing to be related to higher stress, less attachment, expectations of the dog’s behavior, and whether the dog was more work than expected.  Other important variables included whether people rented their home, being on public assistance, and lower education. A second area of study focused on a group of people who accessed a safety net program offering services like free/low-cost altering, and medical care to help people keep their pets. Among the 37 people we contacted one month after receiving safety net services, we found that 92% reported the animal was still in the home as a result of receiving services. Together, these data provide insight into animal relinquishment in Los Angeles and suggest interventions that are well received and help keep at least some pets in their homes.