The latest shortage? Dogs and cats, as folks foster and adopt pets during quarantine

Each year, close to three million dogs and cats are killed in shelters - in some cities more than 70 percent of the animals in shelters are euthanized. Target Zero is a program that works with fellow cities to spay and neuter animals and return them to the streets. Public complaints about animals have plummeted, and many shelters are well on their way to achieving a 'zero-kill' status.

Throughout the American West, recovering populations of wolves and grizzly bears have crept beyond the boundaries of national parks, clashing with sheep and cattle as they advance. Looking to Europe as an example, researchers are training and testing guard dogs in various western states as a means of deterring predators and protecting valuable livestock.

Ivory poaching has decreased the number of live elephants by one-fifth in the past decade. Although Kenya has ratified laws that make ivory poaching and trafficking punishable, identifying smugglers at border security is still a challenge. Airports in Kenya and Tanzania have employed dogs to sniff out ivory hidden in transit with a high success rate of 18 busts in four months at the Kenya location.

For homeless people, their furry companions give them comfort as well as a sense of purpose and security. However, living in poverty prevents them from giving medical care and play toys to their pets. San Francisco’s Veterinary Street Outreach Services is a pop-up clinic that offers free veterinary services to homeless people’s pets twelve times a year.

Africa has the highest TB death rate per head of population and though antibiotics can cure Tb many patients are never diagnosed because the diagnostic tests have a 40% error rate. A group of scientists in Tanzania have trained rats to diagnose TB with a 30% error rate, inspired by rats trained to search for land mines and dogs trained to smell cancer.

Ethiopia has the largest population of donkeys which are used to move people, food, wood and water. Despite their being necessary for survival, most Ethiopians neglected and abused their donkeys. The Donkey Sanctuary teaches people how to take care for their animals, increasing the usefulness of the animal for Ethiopians.

After once again being granted rights to their native land, the Martu people are bringing back the bioregenerative technique of small-scale land burning. In the past century, wildfires have ravaged the areas these people call home and has lead to the loss of over 18 species of animal. They hope that imparting this traditional method of ecological maintenance will decrease the number of wildfires and in many cases, the resulting extinction of other animal species.

With the reintroduction of predators such as wolves and grizzly bears in Montana's national parks, these carnivores are increasingly targeting ranchers’ livestock. To mitigate this issue, livestock composting sites have been created to provide meat for the predators and protect vulnerable species.

A number of towns across northern New England struggled with furry invaders ripping into trash bins and dumpsters, which not only scattered litter and left a big mess, but increased the risk of dangerous encounters between humans and bears. When educational initiatives and voluntary compliance proved ineffective, Lincoln passed an ordinance requiring residents and businesses to secure their garbage - or face a fine. The bylaws have proven to be the most effective method for deterring the hungry forest critters.

The war in Syria has created thousands of traumatized victims, but not all of them are human. In an incredible feat of international diplomacy, collaboration, determination, and courage, a small group of compassionate individuals working with a group called Four Paws leveraged every tool at their disposal to rescue animals from a war-ravaged zoo in Aleppo, proving that animals have the power to bring people together across borders, ethnicities, nationalities, and from all walks of life.