Tough economic times are forcing more families to give up their pets and the cost to take care of them. The Quad City Animal Welfare Center is seeing a lot more dogs and cats.
"People do release their dogs and cats to us simply because they had something happen in their family. Economically they're just not able to keep their pets anymore,” says Patti McRae, Executive Director for the shelter.
McRae says the shelter sees a lot more people dropping their animals off, simply because they can’t afford them.
"It's heartbreaking sometimes to watch people when you know that they're struggling to give up their pets, but they want to make sure the pet is provided for and cared for and that’s where we really come in,” says McRae.
Willy a one year old Pomeranian/Schnauzer mix, is the newest addition of the shelter; his owners couldn’t find a place to live where they could afford to take Willy with them. So now he is looking for a new home.
"We understand that people have life changing occurrences and so sometimes they're not able to take care of their pet," says McRae.
A food bank is one way that the shelter tries to make things a little cheaper for people in need.
"It's something if you're in need and need to get some help for a little while, we're able to provide food for cats and dogs,” McRae says.
In the shelter's wellness clinic they also offer low cost vaccinations, spaying and neutering. Because of the increase in animals the shelter is running out of room.
"We are very full with cats right now and we're getting to the point where we are fairly full with dogs,” says McRae.
She says that without adoption there will be no room to take in more animals.
"We do need to have people that are looking for pets come out and adopt and then we're able to help more people who can't take care of their pets,” says McRae.
If you would like to adopt a pet, here are some shelters below you can contact:
Quad City Animal Welfare Center-(309) 787-6830
QC Paws-(309) 558-3647
Humane Society of Scott County-(563)388-6655