Source: ToledoBlade.com

CLEVELAND hops. The city rocks, but the Cleveland I know hops. He was discovered with six other puppies in a cardboard box abandoned in a city alley. The Animal Protection League said it's rescuing a lot more animals dumped on the streets lately.

In fact, it saw a 500 percent jump in the number of abandoned animals found last year. The APL's story is not unusual. Animal shelters nationwide report rising pet abandonment.

Between last September and February, the Toledo Area Humane Society rescued 50 abandoned animals. In the same period a year earlier, it had no abandoned animals to contend with, John Dinon, executive director, said. Now, staff members are finding them left on the facility's doorstep or maybe tied to a back door.

Blame the economy. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals estimated that up to 1 million cats and dogs nationwide "are at risk of becoming homeless as a result of the continuing economic downturn."

Desperate times have pushed desperate pet owners to leave animals in foreclosed homes, stranded on the side of the road, deserted in empty lots, or discarded in alleyways. It can be a harsh fate for pets that are used to being fed and cared for every day.

But it's another fallout from the climbing unemployment and foreclosure rates. People can't afford their pets anymore. When it comes down to feeding the kids or the pet, the animal goes.
When owners lose their jobs or homes, the animal goes. When cutting back on vet services and buying cheaper pet foods still isn't enough to lessen strained budgets, the animal goes.


Some owners don't bother to give pets to shelters but dump them anywhere. That's what happened to Cleveland Brown, an 8-week-old brown lab mix, a recession pup that got lucky. He found a home with yours truly and brought joy to a 9-year-old boy and his sister, who had been counting the days until spring when dad promised them a puppy.

On the first day of the season, Cleveland arrived in a shelter crate and my work began. As a first-time dog caregiver, I have a lot to learn about house training, tags, shots, and assorted doggy stuff sure to empty my wallet fast.

Expense is why animal abandonment has become such a growing phenomenon when people are losing their jobs and homes and struggling to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads. It's the main reason more pet owners have also been tearfully surrendering their animals to shelters or dog pounds.

A dog warden told me the "surrender room" at her pound was often a heart-breaking place, especially when older pets that had been with families for years, were relinquished to authorities.

Some rescue centers are dispensing free pet food for owners who need help but aren't ready to give up their pets.

And chances are other family members, friends, or neighbors who might have been counted on to assume pet ownership in the past, can't afford the added responsibility either. So far, most animal-control shelters are handling the influx of unwanted animals with aggressive public campaigns to find them new homes.

Those who can provide pets homes need to step forward on behalf of others with decreasing ability to do so. Shelters are doing their best to find homes for the animals coming into the facilities, but the ballooning population of abandoned and surrendered creatures is draining resources. And on top of overcrowding, animal rescue charities face another problem; they rely on donations and endowments to survive and both are dwindling.

The recession bites, but I feel a nibble on my shoelace and I look around for the new dog leash with white paw prints. I've got to get used to a new routine with a demanding puppy that whines, barks, and hops. I've done my duty to help one pup off the streets and now, if you'll excuse us, it's time for him to do his.