Community Veterinary Outreach: supporting homeless people and their pets
April 13, 2015 11:28 AM Subscribe
The most common question I get asked is, "Should homeless people have pets?" And my response is always, "Should we have people who are homeless?" Ottawa veterinarian Michelle Lem talks about the Community Veterinary Outreach program and its model of community medicine for people and pets. At CVO, volunteer veterinarians, vet techs, social workers and public health nurses work together to connect with marginalized people by providing free veterinary care for their beloved pets. You can watch a brief timelapse video of a day in the life at the busy mobile clinic.
With colleagues Elizabeth Stone and William O'Grady, Lem published an article in the Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare based on her MSc thesis research, about the relationship between homeless youth and their pets: "Service providers should understand and support the significant human–animal bond that can exist for these homeless youth" [pdf of article]. She has also been involved in a project to help domestic violence survivors and their pets.
Here is Lem's profile in Canada's Global National's Everyday Heroes series.
With colleagues Elizabeth Stone and William O'Grady, Lem published an article in the Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare based on her MSc thesis research, about the relationship between homeless youth and their pets: "Service providers should understand and support the significant human–animal bond that can exist for these homeless youth" [pdf of article]. She has also been involved in a project to help domestic violence survivors and their pets.
Here is Lem's profile in Canada's Global National's Everyday Heroes series.
Wonderful. I recently saw some journal article showing positive outcomes for homeless youth who have companion animals. I'll see if I can dig it up.
posted by threeants at 12:09 PM on April 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by threeants at 12:09 PM on April 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
For those in the US, here's a list of domestic violence shelters equipped to accept pets.
posted by melissasaurus at 12:25 PM on April 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by melissasaurus at 12:25 PM on April 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
A shop we stop in sometimes here in town is very supportive of rescue efforts. There's a bin by the front door with gallon size ziploc bags of dog food for the taking. There's quite a few homeless people in the area. The owner says that one of the reasons the food is there is because these people will make sure their dog is fed before they are. We love our dogs like family, and I can easily see why the homeless treasure their pets so much. If we lost everything but still had our pups, we'd be able to get through, where if we lost our pups and nothing else, life would be empty. The volunteer veterinary care groups are doing a huge service not just to the dogs, but to the people they're with.
posted by azpenguin at 12:38 PM on April 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by azpenguin at 12:38 PM on April 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
This is amazing, and the people doing this are wonderful.
posted by LooseFilter at 12:44 PM on April 13, 2015
posted by LooseFilter at 12:44 PM on April 13, 2015
I think Michelle Lem is incredible. I would volunteer with CVO in a heartbeat if I lived in Ottawa and my skills were what they needed. I watched all four of the videos on their Vimeo page and found them all very moving--the one called "Should homeless people have pets" (linked on the main page of the CVO website) is 6 1/2 minutes and worth watching in its entirety. I think it's exciting that public health is tapping into people's deep love for their companion animals in order to make sure the humans are getting the health and social services they need, too.
Nthing all the comments above that homeless people will make sure their pets are healthy, sometimes by foregoing the food or health care they need themselves--at one point in the video I linked above, several of the workers involved comment that the pets belonging to the homeless people who access the clinic are usually as healthy or healthier than the housed pets they see.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 2:02 PM on April 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
Nthing all the comments above that homeless people will make sure their pets are healthy, sometimes by foregoing the food or health care they need themselves--at one point in the video I linked above, several of the workers involved comment that the pets belonging to the homeless people who access the clinic are usually as healthy or healthier than the housed pets they see.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 2:02 PM on April 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
my response is always, "Should we have people who are homeless?"
This woman is awesome. I think it should be pointed out that Ottawa is incredibly cold on a winter's night, and it has always bothered me to think there are people that could potentially have to sleep outside through that. Cold enough that I've had to wait for buses for 20 minutes and lost feeling in the skin on my legs for a while. "Should the homeless be allowed to have pets?" The question just reeks of screwed up priorities.
posted by Hoopo at 2:05 PM on April 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
This woman is awesome. I think it should be pointed out that Ottawa is incredibly cold on a winter's night, and it has always bothered me to think there are people that could potentially have to sleep outside through that. Cold enough that I've had to wait for buses for 20 minutes and lost feeling in the skin on my legs for a while. "Should the homeless be allowed to have pets?" The question just reeks of screwed up priorities.
posted by Hoopo at 2:05 PM on April 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
And my response is always, "Should we have people who are homeless?"
The best answer ever.
Second question: Should animals be abandoned and warehoused in shelters and pounds?
Third question: Should EVERY pet be spayed or neutered?
posted by BlueHorse at 3:15 PM on April 13, 2015
The best answer ever.
Second question: Should animals be abandoned and warehoused in shelters and pounds?
Third question: Should EVERY pet be spayed or neutered?
posted by BlueHorse at 3:15 PM on April 13, 2015
An even better question, from my perspective: "Should people be able to just buy pets willy-nilly and dump them wherever they like when they are tired of them?"
On preview: What BlueHorse said.
posted by turbid dahlia at 3:16 PM on April 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
On preview: What BlueHorse said.
posted by turbid dahlia at 3:16 PM on April 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
Third question: Should EVERY pet be spayed or neutered?
I would actually argue no, but that's a whole different kettle of fish. (Short answer: intact does not mean reproducing, and there are some reasons to have an intact pet even when you have no interest in breeding and don't give two wet shits about the dog's manliness. This is particularly true of people who are involved in dog sports who are very concerned about canine physical fitness and safety.)
posted by sciatrix at 3:30 PM on April 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
I would actually argue no, but that's a whole different kettle of fish. (Short answer: intact does not mean reproducing, and there are some reasons to have an intact pet even when you have no interest in breeding and don't give two wet shits about the dog's manliness. This is particularly true of people who are involved in dog sports who are very concerned about canine physical fitness and safety.)
posted by sciatrix at 3:30 PM on April 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
Regardless of what you might think of The Dog Whisperer, on at least one episode he mentions how well behaved 99% of the dogs of the homeless are. I remember being stunned that I'd never noticed that before.
posted by You Should See the Other Guy at 5:05 PM on April 13, 2015
posted by You Should See the Other Guy at 5:05 PM on April 13, 2015
This is particularly true of people who are involved in dog sports who are very concerned about canine physical fitness and safety.
Sciatrix, I'm not trying to be snotty, but I can't think of ANY dog sport in which leaving a dog intact would impact in any way the dog's "physical fitness and safety."
posted by BlueHorse at 9:19 PM on April 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
Sciatrix, I'm not trying to be snotty, but I can't think of ANY dog sport in which leaving a dog intact would impact in any way the dog's "physical fitness and safety."
posted by BlueHorse at 9:19 PM on April 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
Ottawa is incredibly cold on a winter's night
Three Ten dog night
posted by Thella at 11:10 PM on April 13, 2015
posted by Thella at 11:10 PM on April 13, 2015
I know that in the Seattle area, the Humane Society has a Pet Food Bank and also a program that matches both animal services and human volunteers for pet owners affected by HIV.
posted by Dreidl at 1:03 AM on April 14, 2015
posted by Dreidl at 1:03 AM on April 14, 2015
> Regardless of what you might think of The Dog Whisperer, on at least one episode he mentions how well behaved 99% of the dogs of the homeless are. I remember being stunned that I'd never noticed that before.
In Berlin it's common to take your dog with you through the city off-leash, including on the subway.
I'm certain there's something worth thinking about here. Maybe keeping dogs constantly restrained leads to behavioural problems.
posted by cotterpin at 1:34 AM on April 14, 2015
In Berlin it's common to take your dog with you through the city off-leash, including on the subway.
I'm certain there's something worth thinking about here. Maybe keeping dogs constantly restrained leads to behavioural problems.
posted by cotterpin at 1:34 AM on April 14, 2015
BlueHorse: "I can't think of ANY dog sport in which leaving a dog intact would impact in any way the dog's "physical fitness and safety.""
I'm in favor of 100% spay and neuter as well, but there is some evidence that suggests that neutering can lead to an increased risk of joint disease (and cancer) in some breeds of dog. It's a fairly controversial issue in veterinary medicine at the moment.
posted by Rock Steady at 5:27 AM on April 14, 2015
I'm in favor of 100% spay and neuter as well, but there is some evidence that suggests that neutering can lead to an increased risk of joint disease (and cancer) in some breeds of dog. It's a fairly controversial issue in veterinary medicine at the moment.
posted by Rock Steady at 5:27 AM on April 14, 2015
Sciatrix, I'm not trying to be snotty, but I can't think of ANY dog sport in which leaving a dog intact would impact in any way the dog's "physical fitness and safety."
So flyball and agility are both sports in which dogs do a lot of jumping, twisting, and in the case of flyball dogs are trained to hit the box which dispenses a tennis ball at high speed. All of that carries some level of joint impact and muscle development. Just as in human sports, dogs being in good physical shape reduces their risk of injury while playing sports like this. (Think about conditioning--a person running an obstacle course who is badly conditioned and out of shape is much more likely to injure themselves than an athlete who is well conditioned and physically up to the task.) People who are deeply into these sports care about reducing the risk of sports injury to their dogs and generally worry a lot about things like nail length, body condition, and muscle development.
Testosterone closes the growth plates during development. This is why, for example, early geldings are known to be taller than stallions--removing the testosterone slows the closing of those growth plates, resulting in longer but weaker bones. For a sport that is going to be hard on joints and leg bones, you really do not want to do anything that weakens the bone structure of the dog, and a tall lanky dog is also going to have more difficulty turning and twisting than a more compact one. Testosterone really is also involved in muscle development. While people going "oh, I spayed/neutered my dog and that's why the dog is hugely obese" are full of it, you really do frequently see a slight loss in muscle tone after neutering. People who are very concerned about canine physical condition worry about that loss in muscle tone.
(It is also worth mentioning that these people are the main current market for surgeries like ovary-sparing spays and canine vasectomies. I've seen a lot of dog sport people go "I have zero interest in breeding this dog, but I'm worried about the loss of hormonal signaling on their health. How can I satisfy people who request my dog not be capable of reproducing without cutting out the hormones?" Anecdotally, I see a lot of people going for surgical interventions like that who are either involved in sport or who would like to be.
I mean, I only dabble in dog sports and my dog is spayed--but I still recall my vet cheering when I mentioned we were starting flyball and then tell me to get her doing a lot of swimming, so we could build muscle tone in a low-impact environment and reduce the risk of an injury. Additionally, I would not under any circumstances keep a puppy who was spayed under the age of six months, because that is anecdotally known to greatly increase the risk of urinary incontinence in adulthood and that's an issue I'd rather not deal with. Ditto pediatric neuters.
Basically, my point is not "only intact dogs in dog sport," but rather that people who are worried about high-level performance might have a good reason to keep dogs intact. I wouldn't bring this up so much except that I dislike attempts to force spaying and neutering through legislation, which I've seen in a lot of places, and I don't see any reason why "prevent your dog from having consistent litters of puppies" has to equal "spay and neuter everything unless you can come up with a special Breeders' License." I grew up with an intact bitch around who never had a single litter, planned or otherwise, and it's seriously not that difficult to be responsible with intact animals. It's a little bit of an extra hassle and not one I want to deal with at this point in my life--again! my dog is spayed--but I can see myself going through it at some point in the future even though I have zero desire to breed anything.
posted by sciatrix at 7:50 AM on April 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
So flyball and agility are both sports in which dogs do a lot of jumping, twisting, and in the case of flyball dogs are trained to hit the box which dispenses a tennis ball at high speed. All of that carries some level of joint impact and muscle development. Just as in human sports, dogs being in good physical shape reduces their risk of injury while playing sports like this. (Think about conditioning--a person running an obstacle course who is badly conditioned and out of shape is much more likely to injure themselves than an athlete who is well conditioned and physically up to the task.) People who are deeply into these sports care about reducing the risk of sports injury to their dogs and generally worry a lot about things like nail length, body condition, and muscle development.
Testosterone closes the growth plates during development. This is why, for example, early geldings are known to be taller than stallions--removing the testosterone slows the closing of those growth plates, resulting in longer but weaker bones. For a sport that is going to be hard on joints and leg bones, you really do not want to do anything that weakens the bone structure of the dog, and a tall lanky dog is also going to have more difficulty turning and twisting than a more compact one. Testosterone really is also involved in muscle development. While people going "oh, I spayed/neutered my dog and that's why the dog is hugely obese" are full of it, you really do frequently see a slight loss in muscle tone after neutering. People who are very concerned about canine physical condition worry about that loss in muscle tone.
(It is also worth mentioning that these people are the main current market for surgeries like ovary-sparing spays and canine vasectomies. I've seen a lot of dog sport people go "I have zero interest in breeding this dog, but I'm worried about the loss of hormonal signaling on their health. How can I satisfy people who request my dog not be capable of reproducing without cutting out the hormones?" Anecdotally, I see a lot of people going for surgical interventions like that who are either involved in sport or who would like to be.
I mean, I only dabble in dog sports and my dog is spayed--but I still recall my vet cheering when I mentioned we were starting flyball and then tell me to get her doing a lot of swimming, so we could build muscle tone in a low-impact environment and reduce the risk of an injury. Additionally, I would not under any circumstances keep a puppy who was spayed under the age of six months, because that is anecdotally known to greatly increase the risk of urinary incontinence in adulthood and that's an issue I'd rather not deal with. Ditto pediatric neuters.
Basically, my point is not "only intact dogs in dog sport," but rather that people who are worried about high-level performance might have a good reason to keep dogs intact. I wouldn't bring this up so much except that I dislike attempts to force spaying and neutering through legislation, which I've seen in a lot of places, and I don't see any reason why "prevent your dog from having consistent litters of puppies" has to equal "spay and neuter everything unless you can come up with a special Breeders' License." I grew up with an intact bitch around who never had a single litter, planned or otherwise, and it's seriously not that difficult to be responsible with intact animals. It's a little bit of an extra hassle and not one I want to deal with at this point in my life--again! my dog is spayed--but I can see myself going through it at some point in the future even though I have zero desire to breed anything.
posted by sciatrix at 7:50 AM on April 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
One of the unexpectedly weirdest things I've ever done was put together a presentation trying to convince a bunch of macho dudes who own pitties to spay and neuter them. I took an impromptu poll before I gave my speech to gauge how amenable my audience would be to my proposition, and 100% of the men said they couldn't bear the idea of neutering their dog because they -- the humans! -- couldn't bear the idea of cutting their own balls off. I had assumed any objections would be [dog] health- or [human] laziness-based; I had absolutely no idea that neutering your pet could ever be seen as a strike at the heart of human masculinity. The mind reels.
In any case, I'm an atheist, but I'm also a person who loves dogs much, much more than she loves people, and these people are doing god's work. I loved seeing all of the happy pet moms and dads smiling and snuggling their pups and kits as they got their checkups. Thank you for the post, hurdy gurdy girl.
posted by divined by radio at 8:53 AM on April 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
In any case, I'm an atheist, but I'm also a person who loves dogs much, much more than she loves people, and these people are doing god's work. I loved seeing all of the happy pet moms and dads smiling and snuggling their pups and kits as they got their checkups. Thank you for the post, hurdy gurdy girl.
posted by divined by radio at 8:53 AM on April 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
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I have known homeless people who absolutely refused access to resources that might have helped them (like overnight shelters) because the price of accessing those resources would be abandoning a beloved pet. I personally have delayed going to the emergency room after a car accident because I needed to see to my pet's safety first. Evacuation from disaster carries the same thing; people will refuse to evacuate if they're forced to choose between abandoning pets and staying to face the storm.
I think that understanding how much it means to many people to care for an animal and having compassion for that, and helping people to access resources to take care of those animals, is in many ways a more effective and humane strategy than forcing people to give up beloved animals. I feel precisely the same way about rescue initiatives to help people access dog training, for people who have beloved pets but can't figure out why the cat is peeing all over the place or how to fix the dog's separation anxiety when you live in a small apartment. Frequently, you need relatively small interventions to keep an animal where it is, if the people are motivated to keep it, which many people are. This in turn helps deal with homeless or unwanted animals by removing a population that needs rehoming. I really wish more rescues would think about animals owned by low-income people with an attitude of supporting their efforts to be responsible pet owners rather than erring on the side of animal removal and rehoming.
posted by sciatrix at 11:38 AM on April 13, 2015 [24 favorites]