Staff, Volunteer Team Visits Homeless Encampments to Help People and Pets

A pair of labrador mixes with matching orange collars watched with anticipation as a team of Pets In Need staff and volunteers arrived at the homeless encampment where they live with their two- and four-legged extended family. 

The dogs would be further surprised when, a few minutes later, they were on the receiving end of a rabies vaccine. 

The June 13 visit was part of an initiative aimed at empowering low-income people and their pets. 

Members of the Pets In Need medical and program staff, along with teen volunteers, are visiting homeless encampments throughout San Francisco in June and July to hand out donated pet food and supplies and to provide medical check-ups and rabies shots to dogs living in the encampments.

The initiative is conducted in partnership with Project Open Paw, a San Francisco-based non-profit dedicated to the care and feeding of the canine companions of people experiencing homelessness. 

“This is a wonderful opportunity for our teen volunteers and staff to provide valuable services to homeless pets and their companions,” said Marsa Hollander, Pets In Need’s programs director. “By providing medical care and food for these animals we are also helping the people who love and rely on them.”

For people experiencing homelessness who have a dog, providing proof of vaccination can be a barrier to securing housing. 

Pets In Need’s medical team administered vaccines, including rabies shots, to 12 dogs during their June 13 visit and handed out 40 bags of dog food and supplies. They expect to serve dozens more animals this summer. 

“This is a relatively simple thing for us to do, and it has a big impact on people and pets in the encampments,” Hollander said. “In addition to there being one less barrier to securing permanent housing, residents of encampments know there are a lot of people in our community who care about them.”