I just read an article in the Sacramento Bee about homeless pets as innocent victims of the California housing market. Wow, where have they been?

In September of 2007 the Press Enterprise took a look at local shelters and humane societies who were seeing the trend of increased numbers of relinquished animals and the speculation was that the homeless pet increase was due to the mortgage crisis hitting San Bernardino and other parts of California.

Everybody has reported it–but what are they doing about it?

What can you do about it if you lose your home?

One thing to do is to prepare a pet resume. What is a pet resume? It is a document you present to potential landlords with a summary of a companion animal’s best qualities and that also highlights your qualities as a good tenant and pet owners.

Pet resumes should include an appealing picture of your pet, state the animal’s age, activity level, breed or pedigree, good behaviors, participation in training, and the standards of care he or she receives.

Get letters of recommendation from your pet’s trainer, groomer, activity groups, kennel or pet sitter. It wouldn’t hurt to also get letters from your immediate neighbors stating how your pet is a great canine or feline citizen and neighbor.

As for you, obtain letters of recommendation from past landlords and your realtor about your qualities as a home owner, tenant–and ask your community pals to write notes about how you are a good pet owning neighbor.

In addition, more and more pet friendly rental databases are popping up on the web. Try searching:

People with Pets
Move dot com

You can access my audio on pet resumes here or on iTunes under Ark Animal Answers.

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