Six Twin Cities organizations have formed a coalition to help people fleeing domestic violence take their pets with them.
The Minnesota Pet Adoption Coalition works to find temporary homes for dogs and cats when their owners are victims of domestic violence and need immediate help.
According to a nonprofit organization that helps pets in crisis, nearly half of people experiencing domestic abuse maintain their status quo so they don't have to leave their beloved pets behind. The Red Rover Purple Leash Project, formed to increase the number of pet-friendly domestic violence shelters across the country, also found that 71 percent of women in domestic violence shelters say their abuser controls the person being abused. Reports state that this method involved threatening, injuring, or killing pets.
“It's a barrier because they don't want to leave and they're worried that their partner will sell or give away the animal and the animal will be harmed,” said Tabitha Ewart of the Humane Society. talk. “This prevents some people from finding a safe place.”
She says being able to bring pets is a big need.
While the larger goal is to open more pet-friendly domestic violence shelters, the new community coalition will focus on creating a support system where volunteers can take pets home on short notice, from 72 hours to 90 days. I'm guessing.
I don't have time to wait
Ewart said her organization has partnered with Cornerstone, a shelter, in just that way for the past 10 years. However, there is often a waiting list of more than a week for temporary pet foster homes.
People trying to escape abusive situations often don't have that waiting period.
“That’s the biggest gap in our service,” she said.
“There have been a number of cases in the past where partners have harmed animals or threatened to harm animals,” Ewart said. “There are also situations where you have a child who is very attached to their pet and in some cases you don't want to take this additional thing away from the child who is already away from home or school. To keep the pet as part of the family, It’s a portion of it that we can keep for them.”
The coalition's presentation included a personal story from a victim/survivor. I can't leave them there because I was afraid that (the abuser) would push it on me and abuse them and do something to manipulate the situation so that I would come back. I knew that. ”
I need a pet foster parent
While more domestic violence shelters are allowing families to bring their pets, there are times when a pet may not be suitable for the environment, she said.
“Perhaps this animal doesn't interact well with children or maybe it has behavioral issues,” she said, adding that in such cases it would take a situation that is conducive to a crisis. It pointed out.
What the coalition needs more than anything is people willing to volunteer as pet foster parents.
“This is a development piece,” Ewart said. “We need more foster parents. We need people to step into emergency placement roles in times of crisis.”
This coalition was formed to solve some of these problems.
“This coalition is a problem-solving and barrier-addressing group that will work to implement these systems,” she said. “No agency can do all this work alone. This coalition was formed so that we can bring together our diverse strengths and resources to develop a comprehensive program of support.”
In addition to the Humane Society, the coalition includes two animal welfare organizations, The Bond Between and Four Winds Connections, and three shelters: Women's Advocates, Cornerstone and Tubman.
“One of our missions at The Bond Between is to bond people and pets. We want to make fostering accessible to everyone. Baby Gates, Crates, Bowls, and Leashes “We'll provide everything you need, anything you can think of,” said Carrie Openshaw of The Bond Between.
Anyone interested in volunteering can visit https://tinyurl.com/ApplyMNPC.
