Pet adoptions on the rise amid coronavirus pandemic

LONG BEACH, Calif. - There is one sliver of a silver lining during this pandemic: More cats and dogs are finding their forever homes!

The Live Love Animal Rescue in Long Beach is experiencing what many other humane societies and rescues have noticed in the last few weeks — animals are finding homes more than ever.

“A lot more people long for the companionship of a dog,” said Live Love Animal Rescue director, Emily Peters.

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The kennels are clear at the Live Love Rescue — every single one. What's even more incredible, is the fact that this is happening when rescues are closed to the public

“Adoptions are up, fosters are up, donations are not so we are hoping that will come,” said Peters.

And unfortunately, there are a lot of pets to go around. More than 7.6 million homeless dogs and cats enter shelters every year, according to the Humane Society of the U.S.

But since the pandemic started that number is dropping.

The ASPCA says over the past few weeks, there has been a nearly 70% increase in animals going into foster care through the New York City and Los Angeles foster programs, compared to the same time period in 2019.

It may partly be because we have more time on our hands!

“First-time foster parents are so enamored and in love with their foster dog and grateful that they weren't working 12 hours a day to foster a dog. Many of them are adopting them,” said Peters.

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The trend is happening across the nation too. The Pethealth database that covers about 1,400 shelters and organizations around the country says adoptions are up 100% from last year and fosters are up 197%.

Adopting a pet may be just the medicine you need. Research shows the health benefits of pets include reduced blood pressure, increased cardiovascular health, and reduce anxiety.

Keep in mind 1.5 million dogs and cats are euthanized every year in the U.S., according to the ASPCA. So they need more of us to rescue them and give them a forever home. What better time than now to consider adopting?

Go to LiveLoveAnimalRescue.com to learn more.