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Animal Shelter provides short-term care for animals whose owners are going through drug or alcohol treatment

An animal shelter has teamed up with an addiction center to provide accommodation for the animals of people going through an addiction program.

Ruff Haven is a non-profit in Salt Lake City, Utah, that provides crisis accommodation for animals. The shelter is a last resort, and clients of Ruff Haven have a variety of reasons for accessing the service. Homelessness, domestic violence, and hospital admissions are amongst the reasons the service is necessary. Since opening in 2020 they have provided housing for 496 animals belonging to 319 families.

Their mission is: ‘to provide a temporary safe haven for companion animals in order to keep pets and their people together in times of crisis, increase pet retention, and decrease the number of animals entering the shelter system.’

The shelter specializes in stays that are 60 days and under, whilst most addiction programs last much longer than this. By teaming up with Odyssey House, the largest addiction center in Utah, Ruff Haven are accommodating 10-12 clients for a longer period of time.

Animal Shelter provides short-term care for animals whose owners are going through drug or alcohol treatment
Image from Ruff Haven’s Facebook page

“Having the knowledge that their pets are safe while they’re working for themselves provides that additional feeling of support for them to focus on recovery,” Kristina Pulsipher, executive director and co-founder of Ruff Haven, told CNN.

Animals are either house in the group’s shelter or through their foster network. And according to Pulsipher the foster carers are vital to their charity:

“They just provide them all the love and care that they give to their own pets. It gives the animals time to de-stress, and not be in a boarding situation.”

On top of housing animals, Ruff Haven offers an array of other services free of charge to those in need. These include cat and dog vaccinations, microchips, food, collars and leashes, and grooming. There is also a doggie daycare for in-need people who cannot look after their pets during the day.

For more information check out Ruff Haven’s website www.ruffhaven.org

Help support Ruff House by donating to their fundraiser. The link is listed below.

https://www.facebook.com/donate/741768470602963/548388510175962/

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