Animal shelter opens door to homeless folks’ cold pets

With overnight temperatures in Little Rock projected to go as low as 12 degrees this weekend, the city hopes to cut down on the number of homeless people who choose to stay on the streets out of fear of abandoning their pets.

Most shelters in the city don’t allow animals.

Some homeless people say the companionship of a pet is what keeps them going each day, and they aren’t willing to give that up. It’s a common reason given for why people won’t go to overnight shelters.

That’s why Tracy Roark, manager of Little Rock Animal Village, is offering to house the pets of homeless people until the weather warms up.

“We just want to make sure that, No. 1, people are taking advantage of the warming stations and shelters, but also as an animal person and as the animal side of the city, we worry about the animals and want to make sure they are well cared for and receive what they need,” Roark said.

The city’s Animal Village will house the pets, vaccinate them if they aren’t up-to-date on shots and take care of any other medical needs.

“We’ve got a vet on staff, so it doesn’t cost us anything. We have donations from people that would take care of a lot of the things like ripped toenails, or even if it had a broken bone. It doesn’t cost anything extra to do all that stuff, so we’ll take care of all that,” Roark said.

Animal Village has been providing the service during cold weather for a couple of years. Last winter, the city didn’t experience a major cold period, but a couple of people took advantage of the free housing for their pets the year before, Roark said.

This year the city put out the word in a news release. As long as the temperatures reach the low 20s or below, Animal Village will offer the service.

Little Rock is making four community centers available from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. as warming stations where people can get off the streets and out of the cold. Hand and foot warmers, as well as water and snacks, will be provided.

The shelters are the Dunbar center at 1001 W. 16th St., the East Little Rock center at 2500 E. Sixth St., the Southwest center at 6401 Baseline Road and the West Central center at 4521 John Barrow Road.

“We want to not just be a great city, but a great community, one where people look out for each other — especially the most vulnerable among us,” Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola said.

Since the pets of people without homes are also vulnerable to the freezing weather, Animal Village will respond to calls for service for animals in need of shelter during normal business hours — 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

If a homeless person arrives at a shelter and needs to have a pet picked up, he can contact a city staff members at (501) 376-3067 or at (501) 371-4829, the news release said.

Any pet that is sheltered for a homeless person at Animal Village will be returned to its owner once the temperature rises.

Chris Porter, the city’s homeless-services advocate, can be reached in his office at (501) 379-1596 or by email at cporter@littlerock.gov for information about other services, including 24-hour shelters that are available.

The city’s Jericho Way Day Resource Center is open 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. during the week, providing meals and other services, such as help with obtaining identifications or getting into shelters. The center, at 3000 Springer Blvd., can be contacted at (501) 9169859.

In addition to the services provided by the city, The Van, a nonprofit homeless-advocacy group, has been opening two pet-friendly shelters from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. during cold weather at 2BC-A Different Kind of Baptist Church and Levy Church. Transportation is available.

“If someone needs inside at night during this cold snap, there is space and transportation available,” The Van Executive Director Aaron Reddin wrote on his Facebook page. “We (The Van) have 2 emergency shelters open. No money or ID required. Pet friendly. No one is being turned away and we are never too full to take people. We can put people in our warehouse if we have to. Just call us at 501-9553444 and we’ll get ’em in if they’re willing.”