During these challenging times of pandemic, more and more people are looking for a pet to join their family. Bored Panda reached out to Kelly DiCicco, the manager of adoptions promotions at the ASPCA Adoption Center, who said that many people are responding with adjusted adoption and foster programs amid the COVID-19 crisis.

“There’s no doubt that the public's response to support their local shelters by fostering vulnerable animals has been enormous and unprecedented.”

Kelly said that in the first few weeks of stay-at-home orders, the ASPCA saw a nearly 70 percent increase in animals going into foster homes through their NYC and Los Angeles foster programs, compared to the same period in 2019. “There’s no doubt that the response from people across the country willing to open their homes to animals in need during this challenging time has been enormous and unprecedented,” Kelly concluded.

The global pandemic has been making shelters, rescues, foster carers, and animal welfare organizations, including the ASPCA, look for innovative solutions for running adoption procedures.

Kelly said that the ASPCA has been implementing “remote or socially distanced adoptions and online meet-and-greets using video conferencing to help these animals find adoptive homes.”

But the adoptions managers warned that even if the policies are adapted in response to Covid-19, the animal welfare organizations are still following their effective protocols “to ensure pets match their adopters' lifestyles.” This must take into account what the new owners' post-pandemic schedules will be.

Kelly also explained that every shelter has a unique population of animals. And if you’re about to choose an animal to adopt, “prospective adopters should ask questions and rely on shelter staff for guidance.”

“We always encourage adopters to keep an open mind and heart when meeting animals from a shelter or rescue as you may feel a connection with a pet you'd never considered before, like a senior animal or even those of a different breed, size, or species.”

In these unprecedented and critical times, “it's especially beneficial for people to experience the many benefits—including companionship, joy, love, comfort, and stress relief—that come from having an animal in your family,” Kelly concluded.