Hi, Colleague

We hope your summer is off to a great start! It was wonderful seeing so many of our multifamily friends at Apartmentalize in Atlanta last month. A special thanks to all those who stopped by our booth or took the opportunity to relax with us during Kitten Therapy. This month’s newsletter revisits some of those moments, and also includes news of other happenings affecting pets and housing. Plus, Judy Bellack gives us some ideas for how to reduce ESA-related headaches.

July 2023 Newsletter

PIHI Talks Pet-Inclusive Housing at NAA Apartmentalize

Whew, what an NAA Apartmentalize! Informative education sessions, a unique and exciting opening party, connecting with old friends and new, and miles of supplier booths – it was an amazing experience in Atlanta. The Michelson Found Animals PIHI team represented for the second year running on the trade show floor as well as our ever-popular kitten therapy room (just the thing for anyone needing a calming break facilitated by a little feline love!). 

It was a great opportunity to advance the idea of easing pet restrictions with rental housing operators. We were excited to speak with many managers who have already embarked on this path as well as create greater awareness for pet inclusivity in the multifamily housing industry. We hope you enjoy these images from the conference!

Two Federal Bills Addressing Pets and Housing Reintroduced in Congress

While it seems like every day, we come across another story about people parting with their pets due to housing issues, the good news is that we are also seeing legislative efforts to help address this challenge. The Providing for Unhoused People with Pets (PUPP) Act would provide funding for shelters to retrofit their facilities to better accommodate pets so that unhoused individuals don’t have to decide between sufficient housing and staying with their beloved pets.

A second bill reintroduced in June, the Pets Belong With Families Act, would prohibit public housing agencies from imposing breed restrictions on household pets owned by residents of public housing units. While the outcome of these efforts remains to be seen, they represent an important step forward.

Choosing Your Battles on the ESA Front

Sometimes operating an apartment community can feel like a continuous series of battles waged to address the many challenges of ensuring staff, residents and owners are happy. Judy Bellack’s latest blog suggests rental housing operators may be creating an unnecessary battle with residents and prospective renters with ESA accommodation requests.

Read more here for some compelling data and ideas on how to avoid this win-lose situation and help both your properties, owners and renters gain ground on this frustrating topic.

New Florida Law Gives Dog Owners More Flexibility When It Comes to Finding Housing

Similar to what we see happening at the federal level, an increasing number of individual states are taking steps to make it easier for people to stay with their pets. Take Florida Senate Bill 942 as an example.

Starting in October, local governments and public housing authorities in Florida will no longer be able to adopt ordinances or policies designating a dog as dangerous based solely on its breed, weight or size.

Pet Policies Outweigh Cost and Location for Dog Owners

Pet policies like size restrictions and pet deposits are a top consideration for 86% of renters when searching for a new apartment, according to a new survey conducted by multifamily housing provider Cortland.

Cortland also caught our attention earlier this year when the company responded to an urgent call from the Dekalb County Animal Shelter by waiving pet fees for its community residents in Atlanta.

ISAZ Conference Demonstrates the International Nature of Pets + Housing Challenges

The 2023 International Society for Anthrozoology (ISAZ) Conference, held in Edinburgh, Scotland, last month, brought together researchers and practitioners from around the world to discuss the importance of human-animal interaction. The program included presentations from representatives of the Society for Companion Animal Studies (SCAS), as well as a session presenting a gap analysis of scientific literature on pets in housing issues. 

Finally, we hope to see you in the near future at

one of these events!

Ross Barker is co-presenting with Kelsey Gilmore-Futeral from Best Friends Animal Society at the Best Friends National Conference,

August 10-12

Ross Barker and Gina Knepp are presenting at the New Mexico Humane Conference, August 24-25

Judy Bellack is presenting at the Florida Leaders in Lifesaving Summit, September 21

Your Resources for Pet-Inclusive Housing,

Judy Bellack 

Industry Principal,

Pet-Inclusive Housing 

Michelson Found Animals

Ross Barker

Program Director,

Pet-Inclusive Housing

Michelson Found Animals

The Pet-Inclusive Housing Initiative fields research that demonstrates the benefits of pet-friendly housing to rental housing operators, residents, and communities. Read the 2021 PIHI Report.

Michelson Found Animals Foundation

is a leading animal welfare non-profit that believes people and pets are better together. Learn more at foundanimals.org.

HABRI is a non-profit that funds innovative research to scientifically document the health benefits of the human-animal bond and informs the public about the beneficial role of companion animals in society. Learn more at habri.org