SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. – Spokane Valley is considering an adjustment to the city’s homeless outreach contract with Frontier Behavioral Health.
The city’s outreach team is facing challenges in getting the homeless population into treatment due to concerns about their pets.
About 25 percent of the homeless individuals with pets refuse treatment because they worry about losing their pets or their pets’ wellbeing.
Council members are set to consider a program that provides free pet boarding for the first 14 days when someone enters treatment. After that period, the cost would be $20 or $30 per night, depending on whether the pet is a cat or a dog.
The proposed program would cost the city approximately $20,000 annually.
