This month’s Data Bites is a summary of shelter intake data received from the Seattle Animal Shelter (SAS) via a public disclosure request. The data encompasses 2016 to 2022 owner/guardian surrenders. Approximately 85 percent of the data is composed of voluntary surrenders for adoption at the shelter. To a lesser extent, it includes bite quarantines, animals dead on arrival, euthanasia requests and animals born in care, all of which also require owners surrendering their rights to the animal.
Cats made up 48 percent of the voluntary surrenders for adoptions, while dogs were 30 percent and critters (reptiles, exotics, small mammals, and birds) made up the remaining 22 percent.
Please note that the data does not include field surrenders, strays, seizures, or any other type of intake.
Decrease in Owner Surrenders
There is much in the news about overcrowded shelters across the country dealing with a tsunami of animals arriving as a result of economic and housing stressors. As such, we expected to see a sharp increase in shelter intakes at the Seattle Animal Shelter. In contrast, there has actually been a drastic decrease instead. From a high of 991 owner/guardian surrenders in 2016, numbers dropped to 355 in 2022, only slightly higher than the height of the pandemic in 2020.
What is going on? Does this negate the nationwide trend of overcrowded and overwhelmed shelters? Not necessarily. In fact, the low numbers may actually confirm the ongoing crisis across the country because it reflects the collapse of shelter transfers.
A shelter transfer may occur for various reasons. Perhaps there is a need for space or an animal would benefit from a different shelter environment and adopter base. However, so many shelters are now being overwhelmed that they can no longer accept transfers, particularly dogs, from other shelters at the same rate as before. As a result, crowded shelters must either turn away those wanting to surrender their animals or place them on a waiting list. According to Shelter Animals Count, this is the third year in a row in which transfers have been far below pre-pandemic levels.
What happens to the animals that must remain on wait lists? What if the wait is too long for their humans? What happens to the animals that are unable to move into foster care and are stressed by the shelter environment? We have requested additional data from SAS to more fully understand the impacts.
Reasons for Owner/Guardian Surrenders
There were 4,542 owner/guardian surrenders from 2016 to 2022. “Moving” is the number one reason given for surrendering an animal, followed by “too many animals” and “not enough time for the pet.” The top ten reasons for surrender remained consistent both pre- and post-pandemic.
If we review the reasons as a whole, economic and housing issues drive three of the top ten (moving, landlord issues, and cannot afford-general care). An argument can be made that “health of animal” could also be included as the owner may be unable to afford veterinary care.
Differences Between Species
When data is broken down by dogs, cats and critters, the top ten reasons are mostly shared by all three groups. In fact, “moving” is the number one reason for surrender across all groups.
The primary difference between species surrenders is the aggression factor. While both cats and critters can be surrendered due to aggression, these reasons are not in their top ten. Instead of allergies or too many animals, "aggression-bite history” and “aggression-same species” are in the top ten surrender reasons for dogs. This emphasizes the need for a healthy and professional behavior program for all animals, but particularly for these dogs to ensure they have a second chance at a home without posing a public safety threat to humans or other animals.
Instead of aggression-related surrender reasons, both cats and critters share “too many animals” and “allergic to animals” in the top ten reasons for surrender. Smaller animals are easier to accumulate than dogs and are more easily hidden. Allergic reactions to cats and to smaller animals, especially those critters who need hay, are also common.