It’s no secret that Massachusetts’ housing crisis has made life difficult for residents across the state. But Greater Boston animal shelters say one group of victims is often overlooked: pets.
Pets are also losing their homes due to high housing costs and a lack of pet-friendly and affordable homes, according to the Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL Boston) and the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MSPCA).
In 2023, ARL Boston took in nearly 340 pets surrendered for housing-related reasons, the organization said in a Monday press release. Last year, that number more than doubled to over 700.
ARL-Boston has also seen a number of incidents recently where pet owners in crisis left animals outside of shelters or veterinary offices out of desperation, the non-profit said. Last week, two four-month-old puppies were tied to a tree outside its Dedham location.
“These are pet owners who simply don’t know what to do, don’t know what resources are available to them and likely believe they are acting in the best interest of the animal,” ARL Boston wrote in the release.
Why pets are being abandoned
Three housing-related situations are often cited by pet owners surrendering an animal, ARL Boston said. For one, property owners or managers sometimes add no-pet or restrictive pet policies to a lease with little or no notice to tenants.
Additionally, renters may move to a less expensive home that doesn’t allow pets or simply experience sudden housing instability or homelessness, ARL Boston said.
“Tenants have little recourse and are being forced to make the incredibly difficult decision to surrender their pets,” the non-profit wrote in the release.
Pet-friendly housing can be hard to find in Massachusetts. Just under 40% of rental units in the state allow some kind of pet, and only 7% have no breed or weight restrictions, according to MSPCA research.
“Finding housing is already a challenge, and having a pet — particularly a dog — makes finding housing that much more difficult,” MSPCA Advocacy Director Kara Holmquist said in a Monday statement to MassLive.
Additionally, as housing costs have skyrocketed in recent years, so too have the costs of pet ownership. The annual average cost to own a dog was $1,400 in 2024, compared to $875 in 2010, according to the ASPCA. For cats, the annual average cost is now $1,200, compared to $670 in 2010.
This may be particularly true in Boston, which was rated the least pet-friendly city in the U.S. by personal finance website WalletHub last year, largely due to high local veterinary costs.
“When people struggle financially, pets also struggle,” ARL Boston wrote.
What is being done
Two bills currently going through the Massachusetts Legislature would help address these issues.
One bill, SD. 817, would allow pets to stay with their families during states of emergency by limiting evictions due to presence of a pet. It would also bar landlords from refusing to allow dogs based on breed, size, weight or appearance and make it illegal for pet insurance companies to cancel or refuse coverage or charge more based on a dog’s breed.
The other bill, HD.1307, would reestablish and expand pet ownership programs in state-aided housing authorities in Massachusetts. It would also prohibit housing authorities from limiting what types of dogs tenants can own based on breed, size, weight and appearance.
Local shelters are also taking action on this issue. The MSPCA, for instance, said it has added a housing policy specialist position to help craft legislation and local policies in ways that help families and pets stay together.
Additionally, ARL Boston is in the process of rebuilding its Boston Animal Care and Adoption Center to increase its shelter and veterinary hospital capacity and add a central support services hub to help keep pets and people together, the non-profit said. This will allow the center to provide more low-cost veterinary care and pet supplies — the demand for which has more than doubled in the last five years — and have more space to take in homeless animals.
