How to Find Temporary Housing for Your Dogs and Cats

Life has a habit of throwing us curveballs: From an impending surgery to an unexpected bout of unemployment, you may suddenly find yourself looking for a more stable living environment for your pet. Before you decide to rehome your pet, consider finding them a temporary home. It’s hard enough to suffer a blow — and giving up your dogs, cats, or other beloved besties, who are like family to you, adds to that stress. Luckily, there are many resources available to help you. Read on to learn how you can find a temporary home for your pet, so you can reunite with them once you’re prepared to pet-parent again.

How do temporary housing programs work?

Temporary housing programs offer a safe place for your pet to stay while you get back on track. Although they’re offered by many shelter and rescue groups, they differ from foster programs. Foster pet parents typically volunteer their time to care for an animal while they wait to be adopted. In contrast, temporary pet housing is for animals whose parents are experiencing hardship (or are otherwise unable to provide for them on a short-term basis) and don’t want to rehome them. This ensures that pets are ultimately reunited with their families when they’re ready to care for them again.

In more extreme cases, temporary housing offers pets a safe place to stay while their parent seeks shelter from a dangerous relationship. Statistics show that people are more likely to stay in abusive situations if they believe a beloved pet may be the target of retaliation. (The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence reports that 71 percent of individuals in domestic violence shelters report that their abuser threatened, injured, or killed a pet.) Safe options for both pet parent and pet can be found, and many domestic violence shelters either have their own program for pets or can direct you to one.

Where can I find emergency housing for my pet?

If you’ve recently survived a natural disaster such as a hurricane, wildfire, tornado, or other event that displaced you from your home, check with your insurance agency to see if they can offer assistance. If they do not, try reaching out to a humanitarian organization, such as the American Red Cross.

“When possible, Red Cross shelter workers will do all they can to accommodate domesticated pets comfortably, however, depending on the situation, pets may need to be housed in a different location with support from animal welfare groups,” the organization says on their website. “Pet shelters are intended to accommodate animals that live in your home, such as dogs and cats, as well as small birds, rodents, fish, amphibians, and reptiles in enclosures. Please bring your pet(s) with you and a shelter worker will help you when you arrive. Service animals are always welcome in Red Cross emergency shelters and are not considered pets.”

Requirements for temporary pet-housing programs

Sometimes, these programs come with requirements, which may vary depending on the situation. Due to high demand, shelter programs will want to know you have exhausted all other options, so you may need to fill out an application. Some information they may ask for includes:

• Reason for seeking temporary pet housing

• Anticipated length of time needed for temporary pet housing

• Your pet’s spay/neuter and medical history

• Their bite history

• Their age and breed

• Information about their diet and behavior

• Their temperament during vet visits

• Details about their personality and home life

Do I need a temporary home for my dog or cat?

While placing your dog or cat in a pet-boarding facility is an obvious option, this may not be financially sustainable for longer-term situations such as military deployment or hospitalization. Instead, here are steps you can take to find temporary housing for your pet:

• Consider your situation and research accordingly. Will you need pet care for a couple of weeks? Months? A year?

• Reach out to family and friends to see if anyone is available to help you, or if they know someone who can. Even if they can’t commit fully, they may be able to share responsibility.

• Post on social media to see if your network has suggestions.

• Use an app, such as BestyBnB, to find someone in your community who has offered to help someone going through a temporary pet care hardship. People who work with platforms like this undergo a background check and approval process. Bestybnb even allows confidential communication, so you can receive updates on your pet’s care.

• Check your local animal shelter or rescue to see if they have a temporary pet-housing program. If they don’t, they may be able to direct you to a nearby organization that does.

• Look into other respected organizations that may be able to provide what you need. We’ve provided some both nationwide and state-specific suggestions below, and there are plenty of others to be found. 

Organizations that provide temporary pet housing

National

• BestyBnb

• Dogs on Deployment

• Guardian Angels for Soldier’s Pet

• Home to Home

• Pact for Animals

• Sheltering Animals & Families Together

State by state

 Arizona

• Arizona Humane Society

• Lost Our Home Pet Rescue

California

• San Diego Humane Society

Colorado

• Denver Temporary Pet Housing Program

Connecticut

• Connecticut Humane Society

Florida

• Florida Keys SPCA

• Humane Society of Pinellas

Illinois

• Anti-Cruelty

Indiana

• Humane Indiana

Maryland

• Montgomery County Animal Services & Adoption Center 

Minnesota

• Animal Humane Society

Nebraska

• Nebraska Humane Society

New York

• SPCA Serving Erie County

Ohio

• Found House

• SICSA Pet Adoption & Wellness Center

Pennsylvania

• Crisis Center North

• Paws Across Pittsburgh

• Paws Philadelphia

Utah

• Davis County Animal Care

• Ruff Haven Crisis Sheltering

Virginia

• PetHaven Program