This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Saturday is International Homeless Animals Day

Animal welfare organizations around the world will call attention to the plight of homeless animals this Saturday during International Homeless Animals Day.

Closer to home, you may have witnessed the suffering of homeless animals firsthand. While it’s impossible to say exactly how many homeless pets there are in the United States, estimates range to over 70 million just for cats. Roughly five to seven million animals enter shelters every year, including feral dogs and cats, lost pets, the offspring of family pets, and those relinquished by their owners.  An estimated three to four million stray animals are put to sleep every year.

If you are interested in helping homeless animals, here are some things you can do:

Find out what's happening in Newtownwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

·         Spay and neuter your pets. The cost of spaying or neutering is generally less than the cost of raising a litter of puppies or kittens for a single year.  Spaying and neutering helps prevent litters that you may be unable to care for, which contributes to the homeless pet epidemic. Your pets will be healthier and happier as spay-neuter prevents some serious medical and behavioral problems.

·         Volunteer your time or donate funds or supplies to a local animal shelter or rescue group.  Given the number of homeless animals, most shelters are short on money and staffing. 

Find out what's happening in Newtownwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

·         Consider adopting or fostering a pet from a shelter or rescue group. 

·         If you find a lost pet or see an injured stray animal on the street, contact your local animal shelter, rescue groups, police department and/or animal control officer. You can also search lost-found pet databases. A list of helpful resources can be found on our web site. Facebook is increasingly being used successfully to reunite lost pets with their owners.

·         Do everything you can to avoid surrendering your pet to a shelter and encourage others to do so as well. Many reputable animal welfare organizations offer good advice for solving problems that may make it more feasible for you to keep your pet.  

Stay tuned for a post on tips and considerations when adopting a new pet.  In the meantime, for an upbeat, uplifting, emotionally moving music video created by an animal shelter visit:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1mV1kl0XvA





We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?