Why Do Some Pets End Up at Animal Shelters?

Approximately 1 million companion animals are turned over to animal shelters each year in California, nearly 70 percent of those animals are ultimately euthanized. Why would anyone relinquish their cat or dog?

That's what veterinary epidemiologist Philip Kass aimed to find out as co-investigator of the National Shelter Study. Carried out in California and three other areas across the United States from April 1995 to April 1996, the study provided information on 6,929 dogs, cats or litters relinquished to shelters.

Conducted entirely by questionnaire, the study provided unbiased scientific data about factors leading to the surrender of pets. The goal was to learn as much as possible about animals that are relinquished to shelters as well as about the people who give up their pets to shelters, in order to learn the risk factors for unsuccessful relationships.

Philip Kass, epidemiologist and member of the School of Veterinary Medicine faculty and Center for Companion Animal Health, works with hundreds of veterinarians to collect scientific data for solving problems.

These results may help in planning education and intervention programs to drastically reduce the number of animals surrendered to shelters, and the number of potentially adoptable companion animals that are euthanized each year.

"Because there are two components to the human-animal bond," says Dr. Kass, "it's not enough to look just at the dogs and cats. You have to look at the characteristics, lifestyles, beliefs and sentiments of the people who own the animals being turned in to shelters versus those who have developed successful relationships with their pets."

Results of the SOS Study

The California arm of the study, titled the Sacramento Overpopulation Study (SOS) and conducted by Dr. Kass, was supported in part by the CCAH. The SOS survey included 3,900 pet owners~those relinquishing their animals as well as a randomly selected control group of pet owners who have successful relationships with their companion animals.

The study revealed important differences between people who relinquish their pets to shelters and those who do not. In some cases, pets were given up to shelters if owners were losing a job, moving or getting divorced. But, in general, the relinquishing owners tended to be younger, poorer and less educated. Many of those who gave up pets seemed to have a poor understanding of what it really takes to be a pet owner. They knew little about the importance of vaccinations and neutering, or animal behavior and basic training techniques.

Dogs and cats that were fearful, hyperactive or noisy, soiled or damaged the house, or escaped frequently were much more likely to be turned in to shelters. Purebred and purchased animals were more likely to be kept than adopted animals. As animals matured, the risk of abandonment lessened, although as pets reached old age, the risk increased.

Pets that spent a portion of their day inside the house were much more likely to be kept than "outside" animals. Dr. Kass believes that a much stronger bond develops between the animals kept inside and their owners.

On virtually every question about the scale of pet attachment, the trend was clear: the stronger the attachment, the less likely an owner would relinquish a dog or cat. The study showed that once people have relinquished an animal to a shelter, they are more likely to do so again than someone who has never done so. "There is a lot of interest in these studies across the United States," says Dr. Kass, who will soon present his SOS findings at the National Animal Control Directors annual meeting. "This new information is giving genesis to further studies, such as a Morris Animal Foundation investigation to see if owner training provided at the time of adoption will help decrease the risk of animals being relinquished. Other studies may determine whether establishing better criteria for adopting pets at shelters will result in more successful relationships."

Adapted from UC Davis Center for Companion Animal Health CCAH Update, Spring 1998 Companion Animals

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