Action for Pet-Inclusive Housing: Keep Families Together

ACTION FOR PET-INCLUSIVE HOUSING – Keeping Families Together

• 25% of all pet surrenders to MSPCA involve housing barriers
• Landlord restrictions and homelessness are leading drivers of owner surrenders to MSPCA shelters
• Since 2023, MSPCA has spent over $1m on cost of care for pets surrendered due to housing 
• Only 7% of rental units in Massachusetts are pet-inclusive

What is pet-inclusive housing?

Housing providers will often advertise as “pet-friendly” but our research shows that this label is misleading. Restrictions on breed and weight result in the exclusion of most pets, and their families, from the rental housing market. 

“Pet-Inclusive” refers to housing that accepts pets regardless of weight and breed, acknowledging that such factors are not a predictor of personality. Diet, environment, health, training, breeding, genetics, management, and socialization all influence behavior.

Learn more about how housing insecurity impacts pet families

How is MSPCA-Angell working to solve the problem?

Action for Pet Inclusive Housing is working to reduce the number of pets surrendered to our shelters by increasing the number of pet-inclusive housing units built in Massachusetts and supporting emergency services such as homeless shelters to accommodate pets and keep families together. Our strategies include:

• Providing resources on tenants rights/landlord obligations and referrals for services at the point of contact with our shelter locations.
• Case management services for families in need of housing support to prevent surrender.
• Advocacy and engagement with the emergency response systems such as shelters and domestic violence safe havens, to allow people to keep their pets with them as they navigate housing instability. 
• Providing technical assistance to develop new pilot programs for co-sheltering in adult homeless shelters.
• Creating new partnerships with state leadership of oversight agencies to better advocate for animals and pet-families.
• Lobbying for new incentives for housing developers to adopt friendlier policies toward pets and ultimately create the homes pet-families need.

Have more questions? Please contact our Housing Policy Specialist, Jamie Blackburn at Jblackburn@mspca.org