The lack of pet-friendly rental housing is having an impact on cat rescue organizations in Chilliwack.

Local rescues are 鈥渄rowning in cats鈥� that have been surrendered by their owners, said Christy Moschopedis of FCM Community Cat Trappers. People are dropping them off at shelters or abandoning them.

Although Moschopedis鈥� organization does not have a shelter for cats 鈥� FCM focuses on TNRs (trap, neuter/spay, release) of feral cats 鈥� she works closely with local rescues to rehome friendly feral cats and kittens.

鈥淐hilliwack rescues have seen a significant uptick in owner surrenders. Cats left on doorsteps of shelters. Dumped cats. Cats left behind,鈥� she said.

Nearly 80 per cent of the cats in care at four cat rescues in Chilliwack are owner surrenders: ABC Cat Rescue (97 per cent), Chilliwack Animal Safe Haven (63 per cent), Chilliwack Community Animal Projects (100 per cent) and Forever Homes Cat Rescue (58 per cent).

Rescues want to help, but cat owners need to respect the organizations and the staff and volunteers who run them, Moschopedis said.

鈥淒on鈥檛 contact rescues once you鈥檙e already moved out or you have to be out in hours. This is unfair to rescues. Lack of planning on an owner鈥檚 part should not constitute an emergency on rescuers鈥� part.鈥�

Chlo茅 MacBeth, branch manager with the Chilliwack SPCA, echoed Moschopedis鈥� message and added there are other reasons cats are being abandoned.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not just pet-friendly housing that鈥檚 the challenge, though that certainly is the most cited reason for surrender,鈥� MacBeth said.

Those who impulsively bought pets during the pandemic are facing the realities of finding housing, dealing with behavioural issues and the expense of pet ownership.

There鈥檚 also the veterinary shortage issue which slows a cat鈥檚 movement through rescues.

When COVID restrictions came into effect, there was a marked increase in pet adoptions and purchases. This fuelled irresponsible breeding such as backyard breeding, and pet mills. Unscrupulous pet import 鈥榬escues鈥� (flippers) rushed to make money and meet the demand, MacBeth said.

鈥淲e are currently seeing the heartbreaking fallout of these unethical practices,鈥� she said.

The SPCA and the rescues have waitlists for pet owners surrendering their animals since vulnerable pets 鈥� like cruelty investigation cases, street cats and animals that need urgent care 鈥� take priority. Roughly 90 percent of the animals on the SPCA waitlist are one to two years old.

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Moschopedis said pet owners need to give rescues a lot of lead time before surrendering their animals.

鈥淚f you know that you鈥檙e going to need to move in the next month, call immediately to be put on a waitlist,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f you don鈥檛 end up needing your spot on that waitlist, great! They can move on to the next animal on that list.鈥�

Moschopedis listed other things pet owners should do:

鈥� Attempt to rehome yourself. Do not offer your animals 鈥渇ree to a good home.鈥� Ask for a rehome fee. Find an adoption application online and ask people to fill it out. Be choosy about where your pet will go.

鈥� See if you have a family member who might be able to take your animals. Offer to continue to support them financially if you鈥檙e able.

鈥� Vet your animals. Have them to the vet for a check up. Make sure they are up to date medically. Provide the rescue with your animal鈥檚 vet records.

鈥� Update your pet鈥檚 permanent ID (tattoo and/or microchip) once they鈥檝e been rehomed. We often get animals whose ID is registered to a previous owner.

鈥� Don鈥檛 contact rescues once you鈥檙e already moved out or you have to be out in hours. This is unfair to rescues. Lack of planning on an owner鈥檚 part should not constitute an emergency on rescuers鈥� part.

MacBeth listed the current top six reasons why owners are surrendering their pets: they already have too many animals, housing related, unwanted litter, life change (hospitalization), no time, and can鈥檛 afford veterinary care.

鈥淲e have had animals abandoned at our gates which is super frustrating since it forces our already-stretched resources beyond our capacity,鈥� MacBeth said. 鈥淭his is an industry that already faces tremendous challenges of burnout and compassion fatigue. Managed intakes allow us to provide higher levels of care, to both animals and our team.鈥�