Despite the surge in pandemic pets when coronavirus took hold in 2020, numbers show that pet adoptions have actually gone down over the course of the pandemic.
"We've seen, based year over year compared to 2019, that adoptions have been lower," Jennifer Scarlett, President of San Francisco SPCA told KCBS Radio. "Nationally, adoptions are down about five percent."
However, Scarlett said when considering these statistics it's important to keep in mind that shelter intake has also gone down nationally.
"It's not bad news," she said. "As long as we match adoptions with what comes in, that's successful."
The drop in numbers may be due to increased efforts by the San Francisco SPCA, and shelters across the United States, to spay and neuter pets and to keep animals in the home they already have. "Providing community services, helping people with vet bills and other training issues has decreased intake," Scarlett explained.
She added that recently, larger dogs have been spending more time in shelters as people are less likely to adopt them.
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