Pets give us companionship and keep us healthier. They can give us a reason just to get out of bed in the morning. 

Unfortunately, some people have had a difficult time being able to keep their pets in recent years. The cost of housing is up. Inflation makes it harder to afford veterinary care, pet food and other supplies. Eviction moratoriums and financial assistance programs that helped people during the pandemic have largely gone away. 

As a result, many shelters are at or near capacity. Now the people who run those shelters are turning to creative ways to help keep pets in their homes – with their owners. 

To learn more about these approaches, host Erin O'Toole talked with Mouse Jewell, a client intake specialist with the Longmont Humane Society, and Judy Calhoun, CEO at NOCO Humane, which serves Larimer and Weld counties.