Some charitable donations higher, others lower in 2023
Felines & Canines introduces GUPPY program to place 'gently used' pets into new homes
Depending on the industry, charitable donations in 2023 were either higher or lower. Fortune reported that nonprofit organization Giving Tuesday (the Tuesday after Thanksgiving) had a total of $3.1 billion donations this year (0.6% increase from 2022). However, Axios reported that food banks had high levels of need but far fewer donations this holiday season.
Between financial survival after the COVID-19 pandemic, unemployment on a seesaw and 44 million people living in food insecure households in 2022 (the largest one-year increase since 2008), people may be more likely to try to make food they would’ve normally dismissed into meals they can afford.
But the food industry isn’t the only industry that’s hurting. Chicago no-kill animal shelter Felines & Canines has sent out a letter* confirming that 2020 to 2022 was both really great and not so great. According to the adoption center, “We experienced a tremendous spike in adoptions and community support, which facilitated our ability to save a record-breaking number of animals.” Unfortunately, adopting animals did not match the same rate as getting them neutered or spayed. With the increase in new kittens and puppies, adoptions also slowed significantly in 2023.
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“The overall increase in expenses has caused every area of operations to balloon while donations are noticeably down,” according to Felines & Canines.
Recommended Read: “Pandemic dogs are returning to shelters ~ More than 60% of U.S. dog owners would move for their dog’s needs”
To make matters worse, while the organization didn’t experience the rumored return of “pandemic pets,” they have seen an “abnormally high number of animals who were adopted several years ago being returned due to ‘a new baby,’ ‘development of allergies’ and the general ‘they need more attention than we can give them right now.’”
Between pet rental deposits, pet insurance, pet carpools and veterinary costs — without any tax deduction benefits — having a pet can already be expensive. Being a new mom or new dad, on top of a pet with additional medical needs, can indeed get even pricier (and potentially cause rivalries between pets and babies). But that’s all the more reason to both neuter and spay dogs so you don’t have to look for new pet parents and be comfortable with being a new pet owner in the first place.
In Felines & Canines’ case, they’ve created the Gently Used Pet Program (GUPPY), which focuses on long-term family pets being returned for reasons out of their control. These pets are being sponsored (no adoption fee) to encourage interested adoptees to adopt quicker. For pet lovers who don’t necessarily want a pet but who do want to support GUPPY, a donation is accepted. (The Anti-Cruelty Society in Chicago is also waiving the adoption fee.)