SHIAWASSEE COUNTY — Two local organizations are working together to ensure abuse survivors don’t have to choose between safety and their pets.
Giving Paws, a nonprofit based in St. Johns that provides trained support dogs and animal care programs, is partnering with SafeCenter — an Owosso-based nonprofit that offers shelter and services to abuse survivors in Shiawassee and Clinton counties — on a pilot program called the Pet Partner Foster Program.
The program, which aims to find temporary foster homes for the pets of domestic and sexual abuse survivors while they stay at the shelter, is now accepting applications from prospective foster caregivers.
The program grew out of a shared vision between SafeCenter CEO Hannah Gottschalk and Giving Paws CEO Kelly Schafer, who have known each other for years and had been looking for a meaningful way to work together.
“We started talking about ways we could partner, and we know that a barrier for people leaving abusive relationships is often their pets,” Gottschalk said. “If they don’t have a safe place for their pets to go, they’re more reluctant to come into shelter or seek supportive housing. We kept discussing how we could work together, and eventually we came up with the pet-fostering program.”
Gottschalk said it’s common for people entering the shelter to have pets, but only service animals are allowed due to the communal living environment. Still, both she and Schafer believe pet ownership should not prevent someone from seeking help.
“We thought, wow — if we can help remove that barrier, that’s one less obstacle,” Schafer said. “We’ve already had people express interest in fostering but they were unsure about the time commitment. The expectation is that it will be a temporary thing. It’s not with the intent to keep the pet, it’s just to support someone during a difficult time.”
The program doesn’t have any active foster homes yet, but Schafer is actively recruiting and is hoping to find five to 10 available homes in both Shiawassee County and Clinton County.
“We run full background checks, provide training — including on the dynamics of domestic violence — and help meet whatever needs the pets may have,” Schafer said of Giving Paws’ role in the partnership. “We have a veterinarian who screens them for medical and behavioral needs, and then we work to match them with a foster home.
“We’ll also do as much as we can to maintain that connection. We don’t want people coming into the shelter and never seeing their pet again. So we’ve created a plan, handled on a case-by-case basis, to ensure they can receive photos or have visits.”
Giving Paws has its own dedicated space on the SafeCenter campus, which includes a pet pantry available to all SafeCenter clients. The pantry accepts unopened pet food donations as well as gently used items like food dishes, collars and blankets.
The space can also be used for pet visitations.
“We’re hoping to have a fenced-in backyard area, but there will also be indoor space where they can spend time with their pets,” Gottschalk said. “If they prefer to meet off-site, they can work that out with the foster parent too.”
Donations for the pet pantry can be dropped off at SafeCenter, 1300 N. Hickory St. in Owosso, or at Giving Paws, 312 N. Clinton Ave. in St. Johns.
Those interested in becoming a foster pet parent should contact Schafer at Giving Paws at 989-403-5471 or by email at executivehandler@gmail.com.
