Assessing Animal Welfare and Service Needs in a Community-Based Program

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) Community Engagement (CE) program works with communities in New York City to improve animal welfare through accessible services and outreach to pet owners. To systematically identify welfare needs, the CE team developed a 10-item Animal Needs Assessment (ANA) tool and applied it to 519 cases (records that track from first report to resolution or loss of contact with a client) between January 2021 and September 2024. The most frequent needs were lack of enrichment or resting places, illness, behavioral needs and the removal of hazards. Social service referrals were associated with more serious animal needs, highlighting the intersection of human and animal vulnerability. Services were successfully delivered in 93% of cases, and client openness at first contact predicted successful follow-through. These findings suggest that assessment tools such as the ANA may help guide service planning and inform strategies for improving community-based animal welfare initiatives.