Animal shelters struggle during coronavirus pandemic
IMPERIAL COUNTY, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) - We can all agree that pets are our best friends. They bring us comfort when we need it and laughter at the most unexpected times.
Animals are also one of the most vulnerable populations during COVID-19.In California, under Governor Gavin Newsom animal shelters are considered an essential business. However, with social distancing requirements, they have had to make several adjustments.
Devon Apodaca, Executive Director of Imperial County’s humane society says that after the shelter in place orders the had an influx of animals come in.
“We’ve actually had some families contact us saying that you know I have a dog, I have a cat and I was laid from my job and unfortunately I am not able to provide for them by proper care or food. That's why I need to surrender them to the shelter and we believe the best thing you can do for a dog is keep them in the home with their family, he said.”
They offer pet owners a bag of food each month so their pet can stay at home. Apodaca says that for the most part pet owners have been very receptive to this. The shelter has also lost many of their monetary donations.
“We’ve lost donors people lost their jobs and they’re no longer able to properly care for themselves or provide for their families the way that they used too and they’re not able to help us anymore and we completely understand that.”
The shelter is currently still accepting donations so next time you go to the grocery store if you have the means you can go ahead and pick them up an extra bag of dog food or cleaning supplies which has been really hard to come by.
