10/09/09

Suncoast SPCA Gives Pet Food to Needy
Karen Nichols

Last year, the Suncoast SPCA in New Port Richey, Florida (outside Tampa), gave away 384 batches of pet food. This year to date, they’ve given away 1,043 batches.

The SPCA Suncoast works with a food bank to help feed families who have fallen on tough times. The Volunteer Way provides meals and hands out vouchers for free pet food at the SPCA’s Animeal pantry.

For unemployed pet owners, it can make the difference between keeping their pets or surrendering them.

Nora Malone, a nurse, was laid off in January. As the months of unemployment stretched out, money grew tight. Her voucher provided a couple of bags of cat food for her four kittens and two cats.

“This is a great help,” said Malone, 49. “It’s been a struggle.”

The vouchers have no expiration date. When redeemed, the pet owner is given about three weeks worth of pet food. The pet food purchases are funded by donations. But with demand so high, the SPCA doesn’t always have pet food available to distribute.

“There’ve been a few weeks in the past few months where we can’t provide them food,” said Gail Armstrong, executive director of the SPCA. “People get to the point where even if we give them food, that’s still not enough.”

As with most other shelters across the country, the number of animals surrendered this year has skyrocketed at Suncoast SPCA. Some days they turn away dozens of animals for lack of space. Over 8 percent of animals coming into the shelter are euthanized.

“When you’re in a stressful situation, you want your pets because of the comfort they can bring you,” Armstrong said. “When you’re stressed about the economy and you have to take that heart-wrenching step of giving your pet away, it’s sad.”

If you know a pet lover with an upcoming birthday, consider making a donation to a Pet Food Bank program as a birthday gift. Your local SPCA or shelter can point you to programs in your area.

[LINK: tampabay.com]

See related Cat's Meow entries:
Categorized Adoption, Rescue, Shelters, Economic Crisis.Tagged Economy, Florida, Shelters.
05/26/09

Florida Boy Collects Food for Cats and Dogs in Need
Karen Nichols

orlando

The following article from the Orlando Sentinel describes the efforts of third grader Zach Wilson in Longwood, FL, who is doing his best to feed needy cats and dogs. Zach gets four paws up from The Cat’s Meow!

LONGWOOD — If only his mom would let him, Zach Wilson would let all the shelter dogs in central Florida live at his house.

Instead, Zach, 9, and his mom are working to keep pets out of shelters. They started the Central Florida Animal Pantry, the region’s first pet-food giveaway program, so families with financial troubles won’t have to give up their animals for lack of money to feed them.

So far, the Wilsons have accumulated about 1,000 pounds of dog and cat food in their garage, mostly from Wekiva Elementary School, where Zach attends third grade.

Zach, who could never imagine giving up his German shepherd-Labrador mix, Brandi, said he was compelled to do something after he visited several area shelters in search of a second dog and saw so many dogs in cages. The shelter workers told him that many of the older dogs had belonged to owners who lost their homes or jobs and couldn’t afford to keep their pets. He and his mom couldn’t stop thinking about the animals and the families that missed them.

The next morning, Zach told his mom, “We need to feed the dogs.”

“From there, we just sat down and tried to figure out how we could help the situation,” mom Erica Wilson said.

Wilson could find no charity offering free pet food to local families in need. Senior citizens receiving Meals on Wheels can get pet food, and Second Harvest of Central Florida occasionally accepts pet-food donations from corporate donors, which the agency then gives to local shelters.

Since they began to publicize the project a few weeks ago, Wilson has received several offers of help, as well as some pleas for assistance. A single mother supporting two children, two grandchildren, three dogs and two cats wrote: “I am having financial difficulties and would never get rid of my animals but could use some help with food.”

Wilson advised her to come over.

Last year, as the economy imploded, Orange County’s shelter saw a 6 percent increase in the number of abandoned and owner-surrendered animals. In recent months, shelters say the economy-related surrenders have subsided, but the need for help remains. Seminole County Animal Services has seen a fourfold increase in sick or emaciated pets because their owners couldn’t afford to feed the animals or take them to the vet, program coordinator Diane Gagliano said.

Food represents a small portion of a pet owner’s responsibilities, and a change in pet-food brands can disrupt the animal’s digestive system in some cases, said Jake White, senior vice president at the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of Central Florida.

The Wilsons know that giving away biscuits and jerky strips is only part of the answer. So their program also has a medical fund.

“We are finding most of the people who ask for food need vaccines too,” Erica Wilson said.

Sometimes, even just a temporary financial setback can affect the family pet, said Marjorie Boyd, director of animal services for Lake County.

“All it takes is just one thing to happen in our lives, like the car breaks down,” Boyd said. “If they (a pet owner) can get dog food to be able to feed the dog for the next month while they’re scraping to get the car fixed, and then they get back on their feet, it’s a great thing.”

See related Cat's Meow entries:
Categorized Economic Crisis.Tagged Economy, Florida.
04/24/09

Freebies and Coupons for Cat Food and Supplies
Karen Nichols


I don’t know anyone who hasn’t been affected somehow by the current economic crisis. If you’re pinching pennies, you’ll be interested in the Pet Coupons and Deals Blog which scours the Internet for coupons and deals for your and your cat. Here a just a few of the current hot cat deals on the blog:

And those are just the sizzling hot cat deals this week. Click here to see lots more cat deals at Pet Coupons & Deals.

See related Cat's Meow entries:
Categorized Coupons & Freebies, Economic Crisis, Shopping.Tagged Coupons, Economy, Freebies.
04/24/09

Recession-Busting Options for Cat Care in Chicago
Karen Nichols

If you live in the Chicago area and are feeling the pinch during the current financial crisis, check out the following low-cost recession-busting options for cat care:

  • LOW-COST RABIES SHOTS: Cook County will hold a series of community clinics to vaccinate animals for rabies at a discounted rate starting in June. A one-year vaccination will cost $7, and a three-year shot will cost $21. Microchips that trace a pet to its owner can also be inserted for $10. Visit the Cook County Department of Animal and Rabies Control Web site for dates and locations.
  • LOW-COST MICROCHIP: Cook County will hold a series of community clinics at which microchips that trace a pet to its owner can also be inserted for $10. Visit the Cook County Department of Animal and Rabies Control Web site for dates and locations.
  • LOW-COST VACCINATIONS: At the Banfield Animal Hospital located in PetSmart in Skokie, healthy pets can receive $15 to $35 vaccinations after seeing a veterinarian for free on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 2 to 4 p.m. The mandatory vet visit normally costs $35 alone.
  • LOW-COST SPAY/NEUTER: Many area clinics and shelters offer low-cost spay and neuter services, including the Anti-Cruelty Society’s Spay/Neuter Clinic and PAWS Chicago’s Lurie Clinic. At these facilities, fixing your cat costs between $10 and $30, while the service for dogs costs between $60 and $75.
  • FREE PET FOOD: On the third Thursday of every month, people with proof of unemployment, public aid disability or social security aid can receive free pet food from the Animal Welfare League at 6224 S. Wabash Ave. Families in need can also visit the Pooch Pantry at B.C Dog Training Club in Mundelein on Saturdays from 9 a.m.-noon and Wednesdays from 1-4 p.m.

[PHOTO CREDIT: SkyscraperLife.com]

See related Cat's Meow entries:
Categorized Economic Crisis, Microchip, Spay/Neuter and TNR.Tagged Chicago, Economy, Free Cat Food.
04/01/09

Oklahoma Offers Food Bank for Pets
Karen Nichols

Too many people are facing the gruesome decision: feed the kids, or feed the family cat?

In Oklahoma City, Ben Brown, a volunteer with the Oklahoma City Animal Shelter, hopes no local families will have to make that choice. He’s leading a project to create a pet food bank.

okfoodbank.jpgJust like traditional food banks, the cornerstone of the project is donated food and it will serve those who can’t afford to buy pet food on their own.

“The shelter gets two or three calls a day from people asking where they can get some help,” Brown said. “There are senior citizens and disabled people who are on a limited income. There are families who have pets, and the husband lost his job, and now they are trying to take care of pets just on one salary, and they’re struggling.”

The food bank project is part of a larger effort to reduce the number of adoptable animals euthanized at metro-area animal shelters.

Christy Counts, president of the Central Oklahoma Humane Society and vice president of the Metro Alliance for Animal Life, said there are low-cost spay/neuter programs to help low-income families, but there was no way to help struggling pet owners feed their animals.

“Our No. 1 priority is keeping pets out of the shelter,” Counts said. “We certainly want to counteract anyone who might be turning their pets into the shelter because they can’t afford to feed them.”

Donors can drop food at the Oklahoma City Animal Shelter, the Bethany Animal Shelter and the Weed and Seed Community Centers. Addtional donation barrels will be placed at local businesses.

Brown said he’s already responding to requests for help, and he encouraged those who truly need assistance to call.

No one wants to see pets become a casualty of the recession, he said.

“We think this idea will grow,” Brown said. “It’s one more arrow in the quiver of an effort to eliminate the need to euthanize pets.”

See related Cat's Meow entries:
Categorized Economic Crisis.Tagged Economy, Oklahoma, Shelters.