Is it just Miami?

[Grog]

There is something really sad about the epidemics of abandoned pets. Just like many other areas of the economies, it's probably one sector that has bubbled up these last few years (everyone seems to have a dog, a lot more than before... there must be stats somewhere) and now people realize they cannot afford to feed the critters... I have always had trouble with the idea of having pets as... well, pets. Having been raised on a farm, animals were always "working": dogs were guard dogs or shepard dogs, cats were catching mice and spent the night in the garage chasing them, and the day sleeping in the kitchen.

I'm so old fashioned...

[denny]

S.W Florida NPR did a piece on this subject last week with the emphasis on what groups are doing to help people hold unto their animals. Many shelters are turning away people and providing donations of food, reduced vet and grooming care which is the bulk of the expense of owning a pet.

While it may seem heartless to give up a pet, it's an even colder fact that many people who are on a fixed or no income have to make the choice between eating a meal and feeding a pet. Before the economic down turn there were people in Atlanta in decent neighborhoods choosing between having a meal and paying for chemo treatments!

If you feel strongly about this (and are able to do this) then volunteer to help in your local shelter, offer to sponsor a pet, etc. There may be many ways we can help without displacing or euthanising a beloved pet.

[TsPoet]

If you feel strongly about this (and are able to do this) then volunteer to help in your local shelter, offer to sponsor a pet, etc. There may be many ways we can help without displacing or euthanising a beloved pet.

Most communities now have fostering programs, too. It's rather nice, you can foster a homeless pet for awhile while a permanent home is found for it. It's especially nice, since the foster mom/dad can give some information to the new home, like if the pet is housebroken or if it hates men in hats, whatever.
You can't get that info from the pound or humane society, so many many people are going to the foster program to adopt dogs and cats, too.
So, fostering is another way to help.
Fostering allows you to have a pet for awhile, it allows you to help socialize any pets you do have, and it can be quite fun to "borrow" a pet for awhile while also helping to find it a good home.
Our local fostering group (Pet Overpopulation Prevention) also takes donations and helps people with vet care, etc. they are a great group of people.

[TxDoc]

I have to confess that I used to be very judgemental towards people who gave up their dogs. My first thought was always, can't you sell your TV or the stereo first? Or give up going to the movies twice a week?
Late last year I saw several towns around the area go though a major hurricane. That, along with the economic turmoil, prompted sudden changes in the lives of many people. As someone mentioned, many homeowners have to give up their home and relocate in apartments and smaller rental homes. Most leasing management companies absolutely do not allow pets. The lucky ones that do, often allow cats and small dogs - but it is really hard to find a rental with a 100-150lbs dog.
Even temporary arrangements have driven people to give up pets. I have seen many colleagues and friends having to spend weeks and months on a relative's couch or in a hotel. And as you can imagine, pet-friendly hotels were the first to sell out on the FEMA list, and not every relative can accommodate one or more dogs/cats. Some have chosen boarding, but so many could not afford that, and had to consider finding a foster home or permanently relocate their animals.

And really, if I think of the odissey that my dog had to go through for over two months... He had to spend two weeks here, three weeks there, a few nights at the boarding kennel, then another new place for four weeks, then another boarding, then the neighbor's doghouse (spared by the hurricane ), then another home, then a hotel, then a different home... and everywhere you have to provide new care items, blankets, dogbed, food, and so on. And then drive back and forth to every place to check on the dog... and of course all of this happened when gas was $4 a gallon. Seriously, had my income been different, I'm not sure we would have made it through it all without going bankrupt. Now we are both happily settled in a new house - although we're broke - but still having seen all this first hand, I try not to be judgemental anymore. I know people that had to take up loans to offset living expenses and keep their animals, homes, cars... Good for them that they had good credit and were approved - what if they had bad credit and could not get a loan? Some people in my old neighborhood that have given up everything they could before thinking of the dog, and then in the end had no choice but to rehome their pet. And others were camping out in their homes for so long - and could not keep their animals due to the unsafe conditions of the home and yard.

Someone else's life is never as easy as we could think just by watching from the outside. So maybe yes, there are some shallow people around - but for sure there are many more people that have to make difficult choices. I am not saying that I approve people giving up their dogs, but I do understand how they got there - and I would not want to be in their shoes when they have to make that choice.