Susan Schroer visited the Arcata Endeavor last month for two things: peanut butter to feed her pregnant dog Jersey, and a plastic tub for Jersey to deliver in, so she wouldn't get blood on the floor of her tent.
Schroer is a homeless Arcata resident that owns two dogs, who she says are her companions, her protection and even her thermal heating units.
She is one of many of the city's homeless who own dogs as pets and more importantly, as friends.
"I stand on a corner for hours asking for money to get food for them," Schroer said. "Coming to the Endeavor is my last resort." Owning a dog while living on the streets adds an array of difficulties to the lives of the homeless. Homeless dog owners can't get on the bus with their dog, can't go into overnight shelters with their dog and can't go shopping in stores with their dog. And while it is more difficult to see change in their circumstances, it is often easier to see change in their personalities. For some of the homeless, owning a dog keeps them grounded in reality and is a connection to a love that they might not normally feel. Brent Ferguson, program coordinator for the Humboldt County Animal Shelter in McKinleyville, said the biggest concern for homeless dogs is getting them vaccinated. Other potential problems he sees include poor diets and keeping the dog warm. Shorter fur coats usually mean cold nights compared to dogs with longer, thicker fur.
But just because a dog does not have a home, does not mean the animal is not taken care of and loved. "It's not that big of a deal, providing they can raise the animal correctly, it's just like anyone else," Ferguson said.
NORMAL VS. HOMELESS
Homeless dogs, unlike some dogs with owners who have houses, are constantly with their owners. Through cold nights, coastal winds and the Humboldt rain, homeless dogs only know the comfort of their owners. Schroer might argue that her dogs, like others that belong to the homeless, benefit from living unlike 'normal' pets.
"[When you're homeless] you don't leave your dogs by themselves in the backyard for eight hours a day while you're at work," she said.
Nathan King, another homeless Arcata resident, agrees.
"People tell me 'Get a house with a yard,'" said King. "And I tell them, 'My dog has the biggest yard in town!'"
Diesel is King's new Saint Bernard puppy, now about 14 weeks old. King got Diesel from an owner who wasn't in a position to care for a litter of puppies.
"It wasn't something I planned on doing. I saved him from a worse life," King said. Homeless dogs often come from other homeless dogs whose owners can't afford to keep them or simply don't want the added responsibility.
It is unclear how much unfixed animals contribute to the homeless pet population. Calls to local spay and neuter organizations were not returned by deadline.
One woman at Redwood Park in Arcata said that her dog Lillie recently had a litter of pups in the Community Forest. The woman, who wished to remain anonymous, said that she plans on selling the puppies for $25 each, or if that doesn't work, she'll give them away to people who can provide for them.
Her friend, who also wished to remain anonymous, recently got a puppy, but not from Lillie's litter.
"If it's cold, I'll put my coat over him before I put it over me," he said. "These [dogs] are literally our children."
WEATHERING THE WEATHER
Soon, Arcata's homeless and hopefully their pets can have a place to go when the weather turns ugly. The Extreme Weather Shelter program combines different agencies like the Arcata Endeavor with groups interested in helping the homeless, like churches. Ideally, they work together to set up places where the homeless can go in the winter when temperatures, rain or wind get to an intolerable point.
John Shelter, Arcata Endeavor executive director, would like to see some of these places open up their doors to dogs as well, something that the Extreme Weather Shelter program is currently having a hard time doing.
Shelter said that their difficulties come from health issues-mainly not being able to let people and dogs that may carry diseases sleep together.
"We'll never stop finding solutions to our problems," said Shelter. "That's what we do."
FINDING FOOD FOR YOUR MOUTH AND HER MUZZLE
Another problem that homeless people sometimes have trouble with is finding food for their pets. But this "problem" isn't that big of an issue for some homeless dog owners.
To provide for Diesel, King works odd jobs doing a little bit of work "here and there" to get money to buy food for Diesel and himself.
"I'll do the best I can for him," King said. "He's already my best friend. I'll protect him with my life."
Margaret Seldeen, 18, passed through Arcata last month on her way to Fresno, Calif. As she headed south, her group of six turned to eight as they picked up two German Sheppard-Boxer mixes. Seldeen travels in a group, which makes it easier for them to get food since someone can stay outside the store with the dogs.
While in Arcata, Seldeen played her guitar to buy dog food as her puppy, Saint Ides, took a nap in her guitar case. Saint Ides, now almost 10 weeks old, is her "sweet little tweaker," a term of endearment that she and her friend Jacek Mudry, 19, use for the puppy.
"Street kids" take better care of their dogs better than themselves, said Mudry. "Dogs eat first. That's a rule."
Genevieve Frederick is the executive director and founder of Feeding Pets of the Homeless, a national charity based out of Carson, Nev., that collects and distributes dog food for homeless individuals. Other than her work to feed homeless animals, a lot of what Frederick does is to help inform people about what issues actually face the homeless and their dogs, and to distinguish those from stereotypes.
Frederick said a portion of homeless individuals have some sort of mental disorders, whether it be mild depression or severe schizophrenia. Frederick and Shelter, along with other professionals who deal with the homeless and their animals, distinguish between a service dog and a care dog. Both require licensing. Service dogs help people with vision and hearing impairments, or some other disability where a dog can help that person get along easier. But a care dog is for therapeutic purposes. Shelter said that these dogs, prescribed by a doctor, can help with anxiety or depression. Service dogs can enter buildings that normally don't allow dogs, and some places will allow care dogs, but not always. Having these service tags can help homeless people to better provide for themselves and their animals, but the problem is how to get them.
The solution for some, like Seldeen and Mudry, is to fake the tags for their dogs so they can take them wherever they go.
Seldeen said that the fake tags will last until they can get St. Ides properly trained and registered.
DOGS AS MEDICINE?
Frederick said for a lot of homeless people, a pet is their connection to reality. "When they walk in a park, people now look at them, where before people treated them as invisible," Frederick said.
"They're making a connection with society."
The idea that pets can help people maintain contact with the world around them isn't new. Boris Levinson, late professor at Yeshiva University in Bronx, New York, wrote a book on the subject, titled "Pet-oriented Child Psychotherapy."
Levinson wrote that a pet that responds to care and affection and that response to care can mean the difference between contact with reality and withdrawal into fantasy.
This interdependent relationship, regardless of a roof, is something that anyone can benefit from. After all, a home isn't a house; it's where you want to be; and for many of Arcata's homeless pet owners, that place is right next to their dog.
1 comments