21 Feb 2024
A review paper has urged professionals to work with vets in understanding and working with people living rough and their animals.
Allister Webb
Job Title
Image © Andrii / Adobe Stock
A new paper has warned that efforts to support homeless pet owners cannot rely solely on the work of veterinary professionals.
Academics in the United States have called for a multidisciplinary approach both to improve understanding of their specific challenges and develop potential solutions.
They hope the analysis, published in Human-Animal Interactions, will help to provide a focus for future funding of both research and support programmes.
The report said “significant knowledge, intervention and policy gaps still exist for this population”, despite advances made within the veterinary profession.
It argued that professionals seeking to improve health outcomes must prioritise the “unique needs” of homeless pet owners, adding: “Failure to acknowledge the importance of the human-animal bond will lead to incomplete care.
“This is not an issue that should rely solely on the efforts of veterinary professionals, but requires the combined efforts of health care providers, social workers, animal welfare workers, and governmental and non-profit organisations in order to develop innovative one health solutions.
“Homelessness is both a public health and a social justice concern, and finding strategies to combat this complex epidemic will require the commitment and engagement of professionals from a wide variety of disciplines.”
The paper highlighted initiatives including free veterinary clinics, joint human/animal clinics, stigma reduction, interdisciplinary relationships, and pet-friendly lodging as potentially more effective means of providing care for homeless people and their animal companions.
Co-author Michelle Kurkowski said that while homeless pet owners reported significantly lower levels of depression and loneliness than their counterparts without pets, they still face major challenges including the lack of accommodation where pets can stay with them.
Dr Kurkowski added: “Similarly, our review reveals that this group is less likely to utilise needing assistance, such as health care or career services, potentially due to difficulty using public transportation and lack of safe places to leave pets.”
