INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis Animal Care Services (IACS) recently announced it has been chosen as a pilot shelter as part of a national initiative called Human Animal Support Services (HASS).
Goals of this groundbreaking initiative include:
• Helping struggling pet owners access resources to keep their pets
• Getting stray pets home quickly without them having to enter the shelter
• Providing food and medical assistance
• Housing more pets in foster homes
• Providing telehealth assessments for people considering pet surrender due to medical reasons
• Allowing the public to quickly access the shelter through text and e-mail exchanges
IACS has already implemented some of these ideas as part of the Indy CARES program, launched in March 2018. IndyCARES helps to provide and connect pet owners with resources that include medical vouchers, short-term foster care, and re-homing assistance among other things. Other programs, like telehealth and getting stray pets home services will be new for IACS.
Information about the HASS project can be found at www.humananimalssupportservices.org.