'In crisis mode': CACC warns of pet drop-offs as daily line keeps getting longer

[milestogo]

CHICAGO — Chicago Animal Care and Control (CACC) is in “crisis mode” after seeing their daily in-take line grow over the course of the year. Sadly, pets given up by their owners are more likely to die than strays.

Social media has been one of the biggest tools in its toolboxes for shelters all across the country and CACC used it Wednesday to highlight a daily reality for them — long lines of pets getting dropped off.


Wednesday’s daily intake line, Courtesy Chicago Animal Care and Control

“The sad truth is the owner releases are the first ones on the ‘chopping block,'” CACC public information officer Armando Tejeda told WGN News. The shelter is averaging in May around 56 animals being surrendered per day, up from 54 in April. Some are strays, but many are owners giving up their pets.

Data shows this has increased and CACC has been reeling. Tejeda said they have been speaking with other large city shelters and they are experiencing the same thing. “Most of it is the economy — the cost of pet food, vet appointments, other stuff,” Tejeda said. “A lot of people truly love their pets but they just don’t know about all of the resources out there.”

Read more: https://wgntv.com/news/chicago-news/in-crisis-mode-cacc-warns-of-pet-drop-offs-as-daily-line-keeps-getting-longer/

[Clouds Passing]

1. So sad

[AZJonnie]

2. I wonder how many were actually owned by people who've been deported or lost their government jobs

due to DOGE cuts? This is a such a sad development, but it's true that vets are super expensive and pet food isn't cheap and minimum wage is still $7.25/hr. If Medicaid is significantly cut, this epidemic is going to become drastically worse

[milestogo]

3. If you surrender a dog you have to pay a fee.

I wonder how many people just "lose" the pet so it gets picked up by the city and they don't have to pay.

[mopinko]

6. actually, illinois min is $15, and chgo is $16.20.

still, vets r expensive. i had scheduled a visiting vet to put down my old dog and it was going to b $850.
he left on his own terms. it was $350 to have him picked up and cremated.

[milestogo]

7. $850 for euthanasia is absurd

All it takes is a shot of nembutal.

My last two dogs died at home with me holding them. There is no right way, but overcharging for euthanasia is horrible.

I cook for my dog, so he eats human food. He would eat 2 cans of dog food a day at about $9, so I can feed him human food most ot the time for less. I know that that is not an option for everyone.

[mopinko]

11. it is nuts, but

i sorta didnt have a choice. at 85 lbs, there was no way to get him into the car at that point, esp as i was recovering from major surgery.
and i did want him to b at home. i was equal parts grateful that he went on his own, and sad that i wasnt there w him in that moment. he was such a good boy, he deserved whatever i cd do.
he did spend his last days sharing my dinner.

and yeah, i dont even cook for myself. walked away too many times, and burned shit.

[milestogo]

12. Mine had cancer and went through treatment.

Finally the specialty vet said, it's time. So I made an appt for euthanasia for 9am.

Overnight I had him on my bed with his head on my chest. He died at 5:45am. So I really had all night to say goodbye, which was a blessing.

I had a wagon that I use for shopping, so I was able to use that. I made the appt. I paid for his cremation and picked up the ashes.

I knew I could have done it sooner and he would have suffered less. Its such a tough decision.

[mopinko]

15. yeah, i hung on a little too long.

he couldnt get up and down the stairs anymore, so i made him a bed on the 1st floor, and had another dog sleep there w him. i think i shd have just done it then. but i was very sick, so i did the best i cd. i was NOT supposed to lift anything over 10 lbs, but i made a sling to help him w the short stairs we couldnt avoid. many times i had to pull the whole 85 lbs. fortunately i didnt hurt myself.

when they start to pee in the house has been my ‘trigger’ in the past. i know it hurts them when they cant b good any more. this poor boy had a bladder infection toward the end, but even after that cleared he couldnt manage it. he had his 13th bday when i was in the hospital and the asshole who was supposed to stay here blew me off and just left the back door open. came home to an epic mess. dude is lucky i let him live.
he did get spoiled after i got home, so at least he had that. oh to have a crystal ball.

[AZJonnie]

23. Sorry for the loss of your beloved pet, Mo

So hard to lose our furry friends, it's just about the worst thing there is

Yeah, and I meant Federal minimum wage, I know it's higher in some states, thankfully. But still, vets aren't affordable for a lot of people, sadly.

[mopinko]

24. thx.

yeah, i dont know what i wd do if i didnt have money.

[SWBTATTReg]

4. How heartbreaking. I never realized that this was happening.

[spinbaby]

5. I work in cat rescue

All our local rescues and shelters are overwhelmed. Everyone is stressed, no one seems to have money. I suspect it’s about to get worse.

[flvegan]

8. I wonder how much of that number would be eliminated if

there were an onsite pet pantry, where folks could go pick up free (to them) dog/cat/pet food. Even if it were every single one of those 56/day, that's not an overwhelmingly expensive undertaking for someone with a nice bank account.

Looking at you, Chicago millionaires. Do something good (if you're not already). Name it after yourself, be a big shot.

[milestogo]

9. There is a resource list on the page of the article.

Where I live there is a 'community vet' where the services are much less expensive. You can also drop off and pick up pet supplies there for a small donation. I have a lot of extra dog stuff I'm going to bring over this weekend.

[Deep State Witch]

10. We've Been Seeing A LOT Of Dumped Cats

The rescue group that I volunteer with has been seeing a lot of dumped cats, especially around certain low-income apartment complexes, for several months now. It's only gotten worse since Krasnov got into office. We used to get maybe 2-3 strays a week. Now we're getting about one or two per day, especially around the beginning of the month. People who are evicted are just dumping their poor babies.

[Marthe48]

13. During Covid

I remember the animal shelters were almost empty. People who were working form home adopted pets. A lot of those people had to go back to their offices since felon traitor ordered return to offices and so many of the billionaire corporate overlords ordered the same. I remember thinking that there'd be a rebound. Our local shelters are full, and the cat rescues I'm aware of are overwhelmed.

Our county shelter gets the manager's salary from public money and the sheriff's department repays the shelter for housing strays they pick up, or dogs under observation. The rest of the operations depends on donations, or grants if they can get them. Our local shelter posts pleas on facebook:
"Please adopt. If you can't adopt. foster. If you can't foster, volunteer. If you can't volunteer, donate. If you can't donate, share this post."

The last dog I picked for myself died in 2004. Since then, we adopted dogs when relatives died. My friend passed away last fall and I adopted her kitty.

In spite of the overload on shelters, people still buy pure bred animals, many times from puppy mills. We've never bought a dog or cat. If you volunteer at a shelter, every dog has the same look in its eyes. And every dog is a good dog. It doesn't need to be a certain breed to love you.

[Ursus Rex]

25. I think post-covid may be a bigger part than many people expect.

The dogs in that pic look about the right age to have been covid pets, and now they're being abandoned like used toys. That is among the lowest and worst acts a pet owner can do, and they should be shunned as the cruel, weak, and stupid creatures they are. People can suck so hard sometimes.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

26. I am likewise distressed that people will buy

"pure bred" dogs from a breeder, often without knowing anything at all about the breeder, while dogs, including purebreds, languish in a shelter.

My older brother and his wife for many years did Irish Wolfhound rescue in the DC area. Over the years they rescued dozens of Wolfhounds. What a wonderful thing to do.

Me, I'm a cat person. I've had felines on and off my entire life. Early in the pandemic I realized I wouldn't be travelling as much as before, so I went to my local shelter and brought home a 17 year old cat, Fiona. The shelter vet all but tried to talk me out of the adoption. "She is on a special, expensive diet," said the vet. No problem. I'd been there with old cats before. "She's 17 years old. She might live two years, she might live two months. Are you okay with that?" Oh, yes. So I took her home and she was with me all of two and a half weeks. But I'm so glad I had her for that time, that she didn't spend those final two weeks in the shelter. And when I brought her back to be euthanized, they did not charge me for the euthanization, just the cremation.

I did go back a few weeks later, and brought home Tatiana, who is still with me, and probably about seven now.

About two years ago there was a knock on my door, and the couple from across the street were holding their cat Tony (orange tabby, of course)and said, "We're moving, and we can't have a cat in our new place. Would you please take him?" Of course! It helped that Tony had already been spending a lot of time with me, and he and Tatiana already got along.

Our four-legged furry friends are precious.

[Jarqui]

14. My daughter's two indoor cats aged 9 and 10 needed dental work

Some pulled teeth - even though they had 'dental food' and excellent care & diet.
One had an ear infection.

Cost was in the mid thousands.

We do their nails and brush them regularly. They're indoor cats so that is not too bad.
Other than they demand a lot of affection - very attached, they're low maintenance.

I'd never heard of brushing a cat's teeth ... now, I can understand why people are starting to do that.
And I can understand at those prices why people will not be able to afford the care.
Heartbreaking because the animals will never understand why this is happening to them and their owners will be devastated.
There has to be a better way to reduce this.

[Abolishinist]

20. After spending over $3,500 for two separate 'extraction' visits,

we found out that cats need daily dental care to help decrease plaque and prevent tartar accumulation. For the last several years we've been brushing our Beautiful Ms. Zara's teeth on a daily basis, and she's had no problems since. She fidgets a bit, but tolerates it. And I can tell she actually likes the flavor.

The one we use is Oratene Toothpaste Gel.

[Jarqui]

21. I had cats and dogs since I was born - many decades

We went to great lengths to take care of them, etc

This year was the first time I can recall any cat or dog of ours requiring a tooth be pulled.
We never even thought about brushing their teeth.
If we were aware of a sore tooth, we would have got it treated.
We made regular visits to the vets. WE took care of them and would do anything for them.
I spent a $1,000 years ago on a depressed cat - they couldn't find anything physically wrong.
We were a little annoyed our prior vet never picked up the problem.

I'll pass the Oratene Toothpaste Gel suggestion along. Thanks.

[Abolishinist]

22. You're welcome. The Beautiful Ms. Zara approves this message.

[Jarqui]

16. My daughter's two indoor cats recently received some medical attention

Some pulled teeth - even though they had 'dental food' with excellent diet & care.
One had an ear infection.

Cost was in the mid thousands.

We do their nails and brush them regularly. They're indoor cats so that is not too bad.
Other than they demand a lot of affection - very attached, they're low maintenance.

I'd never heard of brushing a cat's teeth ... now, I can understand why people are starting to do that.
And I can understand at those prices why people will not be able to afford the care.
Heartbreaking because the animals will never understand why this is happening to them and their owners will be devastated.
There has to be a better way to reduce this.

[et tu]

17. heartbreaking

look how people are being treated-
animals are even getting worse treatment
so sick of the right wingers cruelty

[Ms. Toad]

18. Interesting timing -

I'm sitting here with a very sick cat on my lap, and another in the basement bathroom - trying to keep the three cats we already have safe.

My daughter had a boyfriend for like 30 seconds. She got custody of mom and son cats in the breakup. He was going to let them run away or drop them off at a shelter.

So we took them to get spayed/neutered last Monday. A few days later, they are both sick - the mom close to death.

We took her to the emergency vet on Sunday. They wanted to chare us about $1200 for x-rays, bloodwork, an ultrsound, fluids, and medicine. We spent $400 for the ultrasound (to confirm there was no internal infection from the surgery) fluids, and medicine. (X-rays would have determined/ruled out pneumoniaFor a cat that isn't mine, that I met 6 days earlier.

She took a turn for the worse the same day her son started showing symptoms.

So I spent all day yesterday debating whether to take her back to the vet (and incur at least $1000 for hospitalization) or just say bye-bye. Fortunately, I was able to coax her to eat mostly liquid food to keep her hydrated. (The big risk for cats with fevers is dehydration.) But that means spending nearly 24/7 trying to make sure she and her son eat/drink enough to let their bodies rid themselves of the virus - offering them watered down cat candy every 1-2 hours to get calories and water into them.

I'm grateful that (1) I have a daughter who cares deeply about animals (2) I have money to be able to choose vet care v. euthanasia and (3) that I'm retired so I can spend all day playing amateur vet.

(I'm pretty sure by today that both will make it. I wasn't anywhere close to that last night.)

[EdmondDantes_]

19. First thank you for fighting for them

Second you are right about the cost of care and it being unaffordable for many people. It sucks. There's pet insurance but it can also be very expensive, and obviously not applicable for cats in your situation.

It's a sad reflection of our own human stratification into haves and have nots. It shouldn't take a second mortgage to afford vet care.

[roamer65]

27. This recession is just getting started.

Wait until 2026.

People are surrendering pets right now. Next up will be children.

[Mountainguy]

28. No. This I don't understand

Giving up my dogs would never even enter my mind.