Pets Abandoned by Owners After Foreclosure

Animals Are the Newest Mortgage Victims as Owners Leave Pets Behind
By EVELYN NIEVES
Associated Press Writer
Jan. 30, 2008—


STOCKTON, Calif. (AP) -- The house was ravaged -- its floors ripped, walls busted and lights smashed by owners who trashed their home before a bank foreclosed on it. Hidden in the wreckage was an abandoned member of the family: a starving pit bull.

The dog found by workers was too far gone to save -- another example of how pets are becoming the newest victims of the nation's mortgage crisis as homeowners leave animals behind when they can no longer afford their property.

Pets "are getting dumped all over," said Traci Jennings, president of the Humane Society of Stanislaus County in northern California. "Farmers are finding dogs dumped on their grazing grounds, while house cats are showing up in wild cat colonies."

In one such colony in Modesto, two obviously tame cats watched alone from a distance as a group of feral cats devoured a pile of dry food Jennings offered.

"These are obviously abandoned cats," Jennings said. "They're not afraid of people, and they stay away from the feral cats because they're ostracized by them."

The abandoned pets are overwhelming animal shelters and drawing fury from bloggers, especially as photos of emaciated animals circulate on the Internet.

The first people to enter an abandoned house, such as property inspectors and real estate brokers, have discovered dogs tied to trees in backyards, cats in garages, and turtles, rabbits and lizards in children's bedrooms.

No one keeps track of the numbers of abandoned pets, but anecdotal evidence suggests that forsaken animals are becoming a problem wherever foreclosures are climbing. Stockton and Modesto have some of the nation's highest foreclosure rates.

Despite months of warning before a foreclosure, many desperate homeowners run out the clock hoping to forestall an eviction. Then they panic, particularly if they are moving to a home where pets are not permitted.

The situation has become so widespread that the Humane Society urged home owners faced with foreclosure to take their animals to a shelter.

Shelters are trying to keep up, but the spike in abandoned pets comes at a time when fewer people are adopting animals. Home sales are plunging to their lowest level in decades, and new homeowners are often the most likely to seek a pet.

Even people who are buying homes are not adopting pets.

"People are not bringing home puppies because times are tough, and animals cost money," said Sharon Silbert, president of Animal Rescue of Tracy, a community near Stockton.

The mortgage crisis showed few signs of easing Tuesday after a real estate tracking company announced that many homeowners started to fall behind on mortgage payments in the last three months, setting the stage for more foreclosures this year.

The San Joaquin Animal Shelter in Stockton is fielding more desperate calls from animal owners about to be evicted. Many call as a last resort after being turned down by various rescue groups with no room for more animals.

"They're usually breaking down on the phone," said Kathy Potter, a shelter dispatcher. "I'm quite direct with them that there's a 50-50 chance the animals might be put down."

Still, shelter operators say, half a chance is better than none.

"They may be euthanized at a shelter," said Stephanie Shain of the Humane Society of the United States. "But they'll be fed and have water and have a humane euthanization, as opposed to spending the last days of their lives eating carpet or wallboard."

Bloggers are furious with the "foreclosure pet" phenomenon, especially after seeing photos of emaciated animals on the Internet. Some critics say the pet owners have already proved they are irresponsible by buying houses they could not afford or mortgages they did not bother to understand.

"They see a pet as property, no different than a worn sofa tossed into the alley when the springs pop," says a posting about foreclosure pets on About.com.

The problem is exacerbated because most people grappling with foreclosure are returning to rental housing or moving in with relatives -- two situations where it can be difficult or impossible to bring pets.

"What we've always known is that when times are hard for people, they're hard for their pets," said Stephen Zawistowski, a vice president at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Abandoning animals is illegal in most states under anti-cruelty laws, but the laws are not rigidly enforced.

In Stockton, shelter workers recently reunited a family with two rottweilers they had left behind in their foreclosed house. The family was staying in a homeless shelter, the dogs being cared for by neighbors at the family's behest. Shelter workers were able to find housing for the family and their dogs.

But happy endings elude a majority of foreclosure animals.

"Their best shot is for the owners to plan ahead some," Jennings said. "But they didn't plan when they bought their house. I don't see that happening anytime soon."


Copyright © 2008 ABC News Internet Ventures

Undercover Investigation Reveals Cruelty to Animals at PetSmart Stores

For years, PetSmart has assured PETA that sick and injured animals in its stores are provided with veterinary care when they need it. We didn't take their word for it. During an undercover investigation at the PetSmart store in Manchester, Connecticut, a store that has a Banfield Hospital right inside it and that PetSmart boasts of as having an "outstanding pet care team" and an "exceptional pet care record," PETA documented more than 100 small animals—including hamsters, domestic rats, lizards, chinchillas, and birds—deprived of effective veterinary care and slowly dying, out of customers' sight.

The small animals sold at PetSmart cost the multimillion-dollar company next to nothing and make up a minuscule percentage of the company's total sales. So why does PetSmart buy them by the thousands only to leave them to die from disease and injury?

The answer is simple. Tiny, adorable hamsters—who can feel pain just as keenly as any dog or cat—are frequently bought on impulse when parents can't resist their child's pleading to bring a small animal home. The hamster may not cost much, but supplies add up quickly. Cages, bedding, food, and other paraphernalia—as well as future supplies (as long as the little animal stays alive)—amount to millions of dollars in annual profit. But these tiny animals victimized by this business mogul often pay the ultimate price—forgotten and neglected in a messy back room where they depend on untrained employees to guess what ails them, hamsters and other tiny beings suffer horribly and often die, unseen and untreated.

We alerted PetSmart's corporate headquarters to animal suffering at the Manchester store while our investigator was working at the store undercover. An e-mail message sent to PetSmart executive Bruce Richardson, reporting "animals … routinely deprived of veterinary care [who] often suffer and die as a result" yielded nothing but a meaningless, dishonest reply from Mr. Richardson in which he wrote: "This particular store has an outstanding pet care team and an exceptional pet care record. No pet that has required a vet has been deprived of that service."

Just three examples of many disturbing entries from the PETA investigator's daily log: "On October 23, 2006, a hamster in cage 10 in the sick room was found dead. This was one of the hamsters that I took to the vet on October 20, 2006, due to her having wet tail and crusty eyes. [The Pet Care Manager] had brought her back to the sick room before the vet could see her and told me that … she did not need to see the vet." "On October 26, 2006, E [a supervisor] brought out a long-haired hamster who had died in the sick room. She had been isolated on October 22 for wet tail, and the chart records showed her slow and painful death. Initially the hamster had diarrhea, but she continued to deteriorate and the night before she died the log notes stated, 'eyes shut, hard, dying.'" "On December 21, 2006, [PetSmart's corporate communications department] sent an e-mail to all store managers stating that there has been an outbreak of salmonella in a couple of stores."

The PetSmart back room log notes document the suffering of animals who are "diagnosed" by store employees. Over a three-day period, three different supervisors—including the pet care manager—in the Manchester store wrote on a dying calico hamster's chart, "[Day 1, morning] wobbly, dehydrated, diarrhea … [Day 1, evening] very lethargic/dehydrated, regressing … [Day 2, morning] very wobbly, dehydrated … [Day 2, evening] dehydrated/getting hard, very lethargic … [Day 3, morning] dying, no meds given, can't swallow, regressed … [Day 3, evening] dead" but did not take the animal to a veterinarian even to have her put out of her misery.

The photos of some of the animals treated for diseases such as wet tail and upper respiratory infections show just how miserable they were as they languished, untreated, in PetSmart's custody.

PetSmart's millions mean nothing but penny-pinching shortcuts and misery for the little animals neglected by the company, which is clearly unwilling to or incapable of caring for animals, period. Please do not buy anything from PetSmart until it stops selling all animals. Buy your supplies online or at a store that does not sell animals.

One lucky hamster girl, Gigi, was adopted from the Manchester store's sick room by PETA's investigator and has a “happily ever after” story.

Sign to end animal sales at PetSmart: http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/petsmart_jails_birds

For more information: http://www.peta.org/feat-petsmart.asp




Learn More at PETA.org

PET FOOD RECALL UPDATE: ACETAMINOPHEN FOUND IN BRANDS OF CAT AND DOG FOOD NOT ON MENU FOODS LIST

With reports that acetaminophen has recently been found in some brands of cat and dog food not included on the Menu Foods recall list, the ASPCA is urging pet parents to stay vigilant to signs of illness in their pets as large doses of acetaminophen, just like many other human medications, can be extremely toxic.

“At this point, we have very little information as to the actual level of concentration of this reported contamination," says Dr. Steven Hansen, a board-certified toxicologist and Senior Vice President with the ASPCA, who manages the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center. “Our data shows that if an average-sized cat ingests as little as one extra-strength acetaminophen pain-reliever caplet and is not treated in time, he can suffer fatal consequences.”

Adds Dr. Louise Murray, a board-certified internist and Director of Medicine at the ASPCA’s Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital in New York City, “Until the U. S. Food & Drug Administration releases its findings from this new investigation, we urge pet parents to keep a close eye on their pets, and report any changes in dietary consumption or behavior to their veterinarian immediately.

As we continue to monitor the pet food recall situation, the ASPCA advises pet parents to keep abreast of developing news by visiting the ASPCA Pet Food Recall Center regularly for the latest information available.

http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=media_newsalert060807&JServSessionIdr010=58adbxs3x2.app28b#5

VISIT THE PET FOOD RECALL RESOURCE CENTER FOR THE LATEST INFO

Late last week, news conferences held by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Menu Foods, Inc., confirmed suspicions by the ASPCA that a contaminant other than aminopterin may be responsible for the illnesses and deaths of animals who ingested recently recalled contaminated foods. The contaminant, melamine, was found in wheat gluten samples of the recalled lots.

To add to the fast-breaking developments, Hill’s Pet Nutrition voluntarily recalled its Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry cat food—its only product containing wheat gluten—which it believes may have been contaminated by infected wheat gluten. At this time, the ASPCA is uncertain as to whether other pet food manufacturers will issue voluntary recalls, and we advise pet parents to contact their manufacturer directly.

Although we share your concerns about keeping your companion animals safe and healthy, we also want to assure consumers that there is no need to panic or take sudden actions, such as refraining from feeding dry food altogether. “There are several dry cat and dog foods that do not include any wheat gluten in their formulas,” says the ASPCA’s Dr. Steven Hansen, veterinary toxicologist, “and you can get that information from the label on your pet food or the manufacturer. Further, if your pet is used to eating a particular type of food, a sudden change in diet or diet type may upset his stomach. This may be especially problematic for pets with pre-existing illnesses.”

For additional information on the pet food recall, including answers to your most frequently asked questions, please visit the Pet Food Recall Resource Center.

PET FOOD RECALL UPDATE: CONTAMINANTS IN ADDITION TO RAT POISON MAY BE INVOLVED

Since Menu Foods, Inc. announced its massive pet food recall on March 16, the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center has been flooded with calls from pet parents and animal welfare professionals alike. Based on data from these calls, the ASPCA reports that clinical signs in cats affected by the contaminated foods are not fully consistent with the ingestion of rat poison containing aminopterin which, says Menu Foods, is at the “root” of the contamination issue.

Explains the ASPCA’s Dr. Steven Hansen, veterinary toxicologist, “There are so many inconsistencies in the purported link between aminopterin and the animals affected that we urge veterinary toxicologists and veterinary pathologists at diagnostic laboratories to continue looking for additional contaminants.”

Pets who are being treated for kidney failure suspected to be related to contaminated food should stay on their treatment. If your pet has eaten contaminated food and shows any signs of illness, including loss of appetite, lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea, changes in water consumption and changes in urination, please consult with a veterinarian or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435 immediately. In order to help with your pet’s diagnosis, you are advised to:


- retain food samples for analysis

- save all packaging and receipts, and document the product name, type of product, date codes and/or production lot numbers

- document the dates that the product was fed to your pet, how much was eaten, and the time when you first noticed symptoms

Adverse effects or deaths of pets conclusively linked to eating the contaminated foods should be reported to the FDA. Additionally, the American Veterinary Medical Association website contains helpful information for pet parents and veterinarians.

For a complete list of recalled pet food brands, please visit http://www.menufoods.com/recall.

Update, 3/30/07 10:45 A.M.: Click here to read the ASPCA's most recent information on the pet food recall.