New Yorkers adopt pets to deal with coronavirus stress

Jocelyn Tsai adopted a mixed-breed dog, Archer, from the Animal Care Centers of NYC.

The shelter's foster supervisor, Julia Lubbock, said thousands of New Yorkers have wanted to foster and adopt animals.

When the coronavirus pandemic shut down New York City, Jocelyn Tsai filled out an online application to foster a dog from the Animal Care Centers of NYC.

It was the end of March, and the shelter had only few dogs left after New Yorkers had stormed the facility for pets a few days earlier.

One of those still available in the shelter's Harlem location was a red-haired, mixed race male dog, Archer.

"I ended up just falling in love with him," Tsai said during a walk with Archer in Central Park.

"And I adopted him two weeks after." Archer became Tsai's constant companion and antidote for loneliness from social distancing and isolation in the coronavirus era.

Just as the lockdown started, the Animal Care Centers of NYC launched a social media campaign to encourage New Yorkers to foster and adopt pets.

The shelter's foster supervisor, Julia Lubbock said, the response was "unbelievable." "We got 3,000 within the first day and that rose to 5,000, 6,000 very, very quickly," Lubbock said.

"We have never been in the position to have more foster parents than we do animals." Since March 13th, the Animal Care Centers of NYC placed about 800 animals in foster care and over 600 were adopted.

(Production: Aleksandra Michalska)