Foreclosure pets on the rise in Arizona

Sister Gannett paper the Arizona Republic has a front page story on how pets are affected by the foreclosure and subprime mortgage crisis.

Reporter Samantha Hauser writes:

Foreclosures in metropolitan Phoenix continued to rise in May, with 3,402 foreclosures filed, up more than 14 percent from April, according to the Information Market.

Shelters across the nation also are seeing an increase, according to the Humane Society of the United States, which has no affiliation with the Arizona Humane Society.

The problem is most acute where foreclosures are common and the general economy is struggling. States such as Arizona, California and Florida are being inundated with foreclosed homes, and subsequently, their animal shelters are being flooded with pets.

I've written about this several times in the past.

There are grants to help shelters that find themselves overwhelmed. But it's really going to take a turnaround in the economy to get things back to normal.

Housing crisis continues to affect pets

There continue to be stories about how the housing market is affecting pets.

Homeowners who lose their houses through foreclosures are abandoning their animals — either taking them to a shelter or, sadly, leaving them to fend for themselves.

Here's an article in the Mercury News about how things are in San Jose, Calif. There's been a 12 percent jump in the number of stray dogs admitted to the San Jose Animal Care Center over the last six months, officials said.

And there are more investigations into animals left in vacant homes.

Here are some blog entries I've done in the past about the sub-prime mortgage crisis.

Because of the shaky housing market, the Petco Foundation is starting a new fund to provide short-term funding for animal welfare groups to assist pet owners who have lost their homes or are experiencing temporary financial hurdles.

Called "We Are Family, Too," it funds pet food banks, product donations, referral lists of pet-friendly housing, short-term foster pet care, spay and neuter services and veterinary services.

"Through this fund we are giving voice to the thousands of pets that have lost their families – abandoned or surrendered because their owners lost their home or could no longer afford to feed and take care of them," said Paul Jolly, Petco Foundation vice president and executive director. "Animal welfare groups across the country are working to alleviate this growing crisis, and the Petco Foundation is proud to support their efforts to keep families and pets together."

Is this on your to-do list?

Believers in the Rapture — the time when Christians alive on the earth are simultaneously transported to Heaven — now have something else to worry about.

What happens to your pet? Who will take care of Fido or Fluffy? Who will feed the fish?

There is now a Web site that can help you out.

Post Rapture Pets has information on who you should choose to care for your companion animal in your eternal absence (atheists are probably the best bet) and even offers feeding and watering suggestions (an automatic feeder with a battery backup is preferred).

It even rates the other religions for post-rapture reliability.

Good luck.

Worsening times affects pets, too

It seems the economy is continuing to take its toll on Americans. The price of gas at the station near me is at $4.06 a gallon.

The housing foreclosure crisis, which we've talked about before (here and here), is still affecting people who cannot find housing that accommodates their companion animals or, simply, cannot afford to take care of them.

The American Humane Association has some tips for homeowners, mortgage lenders and shelters that may be impacted by the crisis.

They are even offering grants to shelters and animal welfare organizations so the agencies can help care for the animals who are collateral damage in these hard times.

Some of the tips for homeowners include asking family, friends and co-workers to care for your pets while you relocate and surrendering your pets to your local animal shelter.

The association urges people not to just abandon pets or set them free. State criminal animal-cruelty laws may apply, if even you think you've left enough food and water for your pets.

Baghdad cat lady saves Iraqi animals

Louise, whose first name was only used in this Associated Press article because of security reasons, works to save small animals caught in the fighting of the Iraqi war.

It all started when Simba, a white cat with "tabby bits," strolled onto a U.S. military base. Soon came the planning for Operation Puss 'n' Boots — as the Simba journey was dubbed by Louise's colleagues when she worked at the Army outpost near Tikrit, about 80 miles north of Baghdad.

An Iraqi working with Louise was heading to Basra in southern Iraq. She asked if he could take Simba to the border with Kuwait, where an English friend would be waiting.

Just south of Baghdad, a car bomb exploded a few yards from the cab, but no one was hurt. At the border, Simba crossed into Kuwait with the cat hidden.

And the article also tells us what else we are paying a former Halliburton company to do over in Iraq.

Thousands of stray cats and dogs in Baghdad's Green Zone and on U.S. military installations across Iraq have been trapped and euthanized for health reasons under a program carried out for the military by the contractor KBR Inc., a former Halliburton subsidiary.