Good News Worth Sharing: Pet Adoptions Are On The Rise Around The World

Pet adoptions have soared around the world as social-distancing and self-isolation have many longing for a companion at home. According to the RSPCA, there was a huge spike in visitors to their online fostering pages in the week before lockdown.

The surge in pets being rehomed was first reported in New York – which sits at the epicentre of US coronavirus cases – when two rescue organisations, Muddy Paws and Best Friends Animal Society, reported that some of their shelters had ran out of stray dogs and cats following a 10-fold increase in applications to foster and adopt.

Then in the UK, Battersea Cats and Dogs Home (BCDH) and The Dog’s Trust both reported a noticeable rise in interest. ‘Over the last week we have rehomed nearly 100 animals, with 26 animals rehomed across our three centres on Thursday alone,’ BCDH told Sky News. ‘We are striving to arrange the collection of dogs and cats that are currently on reserve, so there may be some delay in responding to new enquiries.’

Both organisations have been forced to close to the public to prevent the spread of Covid-19 and the increased interest came with warnings to the public that rehoming pets is a life-long commitment not a temporary companion.

The RSPA has too confirmed the surge in adoptions, telling Grazia:

'We received lots of adoption enquiries before going into lockdown and we sent 289 animals off to their new homes before the lockdown was introduced. We're really pleased that these animals are now spending lots of quality time with their loving new families.'

'We also saw a surge in the number of people considering fostering while they were socially distancing and working from home before the lockdown, and we experienced a 256% increase in traffic to the fostering section of our website in just one week,' the spokesperson continued. 'While we, unfortunately, can't accept any new adoption applications or fosterers at this time, we really appreciate the offers of help and hope to be able to take people up on some of these offers once the lockdown is lifted.'

Miley Cyrus and Selena Gomez have both encouraged their fans to think about adopting during this time having just done it themselves. Speaking on her new live IG show, Bright Minded, Cyrus introduced her new dog Bo and had a guest speaker explain the importance of adopting now more than ever.

‘Many families have had to surrender their pets after losing jobs, wages or housing security, meaning there are many animals left in need,’ Melissa Bacelar of The Wagmor Luxury Spa, Hotel & Rescue said. ‘In addition, many shelters are closing because strict orders for only essential businesses to operate have swept across the country.’

And it’s the same over here in the UK with many shelters closing; however with the surge in adoptions and fostering prior to lockdown it seems there has been a healthy increase in pets finding a home in these troublesome times. We can only hope they’re kept as pets for life, not just for lockdown.

If you'd like to help the RSPCA during this difficult time then you can donate online. To find out more about donating visit [www.rspca.org.uk/covid.](www.rspca.org.uk/coviduk/covid)

In response to an overwhelming news cycle, Grazia will collate good news stories from all corners of the internet to give our readers (and ourselves!) a break from the constant barrage of worrying news.

We can’t hide from what’s happening, in fact we’ll still be covering the news on site and social and staying informed about the latest developments, but our Good News Worth Sharing series will be a safe haven and a place to spread some positivity.