LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — Last year, more than 4,700 pet owners surrendered their animals, many because they simply could not afford to pay for food and veterinary care.
The Animal Foundation reminded pet parents it has programs to prevent that. Foundation CEO Hillary Grey issued that reminder while giving Representative Dina Titus a tour of the shelter.
Titus said pet surrenders are up nationwide, with 17.5% of people giving up their pets not because they didn’t care for them, but because they couldn’t take care of them.
“And that was the last resort,” Titus said.
Grey said her foundation is already hard at work keeping those families together. Representative Dina Titus toured the Animal Foundation and learned about the impact high prices are having on valley families. Grey said owners who turned over their pets shared similar stories.
“And to a person, almost, they will tell us these terrible stories about rising costs, whether it’s rising rents, whether it’s somebody who is out of work, you know, because of something that’s happened when there were a lot of cuts to government jobs. That was felt here in Nevada pretty acutely,” said Hillary Grey, CEO of The Animal Foundation.
National legislation aims to help pet owners
Titus said there is national legislation in the works to ease pet parents’ pains, including the BARC Act, which stands for Bring Animals Relief and Kibble. That’s HR 3732, and Titus said she is a co-sponsor of that bill.
The legislation would make it easier for surplus pet food to be delivered to animal shelters and make it easier for people to donate animal appliances so they can get some tax credit for it, Titus said.
Titus also mentioned HR 4921, providing for unhoused people with pets, known as the PUP Act. She said they are “very clever with these acronyms that are appropriate.”
The PUP Act would help funding for homeless shelters to accommodate pets because a lot of people who are homeless on the streets have dogs, Titus said.
“So let’s be sure that those shelters are able to accommodate pets as well. So that helps both the person and the animal,” Titus said.
Foundation offers multiple support programs
“And so we have some programs under an acronym of our own called KEPT, keeping every pet and person together. And that family of programs are really designed to help prevent owner surrenders. If somebody is in trouble and, you know, just having a couple of weeks or months of pet food, getting a break on supplies, we can help offset some costs of veterinary care, pet rent and pet deposits,” Grey said.
The foundation’s pet support hotline is available seven days a week between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. at 702-760-PETS. An operator can help pet parents find the services they need.
“We want to keep pets in homes. We want to keep our community humane. We want to survive inflation and higher costs and things like that until we can get to a better moment.”
Grey described calls from pet owners saying they’d lost their job, lost their place to live, and were thinking they had to surrender their pet.
“And they can get somebody trauma-informed care with a friendly voice that will say, I am so sorry to hear that that’s happening to you. Maybe we can set you up with some resources. Let’s hear your story, see what we can do for you,” Grey said.
Titus said pets are a beloved part of families. She said they bring solace, are good for children, and provide company for seniors. That makes it a tough choice for pet owners of all ages.
“A pet is really part of the family. So when you talk about increasing cost, you’ve got to look at the cost of having a pet,” Titus said.
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