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Fido buying premium dog food with his EBT card will send me over the edge.
Yes we will have threads about how food stamp recipients are buying Ziwi air dried dog food and gourmet dog food from the refrigerated section will us tax payers have to buy Ol' Roy from the Wal Mart.
About 10 years ago, our local Meals on Wheels announced such a program. It seems that drivers noticed the styro food containers on the floors of pet owners while making deliveries, and shared this info at meetings.
Instead of "scolding" the recipients, they contacted area pet stores for donations. Many, especially those locally-owned, were happy to help out. Now, pet food is included upon request.
Many of the MOW recipients are elderly. It's not exactly news that pets can brighten the lives of such people, many of whom are shut-ins who are socially isolated, or simply can't get out.
My initial thought to this was, "Huh?"--then I sat down and considered the following:
A lot of animal shelters see pets surrendered when the owners can no longer take care of them--such as in a job loss (which, obviously means loss of income). A dog who may have been part of the family for five years now risks being taken to a shelter because the family can't afford to buy his food, and more likely than not, put down, due to the shelters being overcrowded.
From experience, I had a friend who lost her job and her fiance (which meant losing her home, since they'd been living together.) I told her she could stay with me until she got back on her feet. She was initially going to leave her dog with her now-ex, figuring that 1.) She didn't have the money to pay for his care, and 2.) I already had two dogs and two cats, so she didn't want to crowd it even more.
Then she found out her ex stopped feeding the dog, so she went to get him, with the intention of surrendering him to a shelter....which broke her heart, because he was 1.) Elderly, and 2.) Didn't like children (she and her fiance didn't intend to have any), so she figured he was as good as dead. I told her to bring him to the house. And pretty much the whole time she was there, I was the one buying his food.
Granted, there's more to pet care than just food, but a lot of routine care (shots, for example), are spread out pretty far apart, and some shelters will charge on a sliding scale for them. And a lot of people will immediately think, "Oh my God, I can't afford to buy dog food!"--which is a daily necessity. I don't think they tend to think about the other needs in the immediate rush of, "How am I going to manage?"
I'm not saying this is the right way to go about it, but I am wondering if that was part of the thinking behind it--if people who already have pets find themselves on hard times and can't feed them, maybe create a way so they can, rather than the pet getting dumped at a shelter.
Neither the OP or the linked article mention the ASPCA pushing any kind of food stamps for pets program.
The thread title is very dishonest.
gettin' a little too old to actually read the links, gringo?
Quote:
These groups say that allowing food stamps to be used for pet food could potentially keep tens of thousands of animals out of shelters and prevent low-income people from giving their own food to their pets. “It’s potentially game-changing,” said Matt Bershadker, the president of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. “I think we should get behind this in a big way.”
My initial thought to this was, "Huh?"--then I sat down and considered the following:
A lot of animal shelters see pets surrendered when the owners can no longer take care of them--such as in a job loss (which, obviously means loss of income). A dog who may have been part of the family for five years now risks being taken to a shelter because the family can't afford to buy his food, and more likely than not, put down, due to the shelters being overcrowded.
From experience, I had a friend who lost her job and her fiance (which meant losing her home, since they'd been living together.) I told her she could stay with me until she got back on her feet. She was initially going to leave her dog with her now-ex, figuring that 1.) She didn't have the money to pay for his care, and 2.) I already had two dogs and two cats, so she didn't want to crowd it even more.
Then she found out her ex stopped feeding the dog, so she went to get him, with the intention of surrendering him to a shelter....which broke her heart, because he was 1.) Elderly, and 2.) Didn't like children (she and her fiance didn't intend to have any), so she figured he was as good as dead. I told her to bring him to the house. And pretty much the whole time she was there, I was the one buying his food.
Granted, there's more to pet care than just food, but a lot of routine care (shots, for example), are spread out pretty far apart, and some shelters will charge on a sliding scale for them. And a lot of people will immediately think, "Oh my God, I can't afford to buy dog food!"--which is a daily necessity. I don't think they tend to think about the other needs in the immediate rush of, "How am I going to manage?"
I'm not saying this is the right way to go about it, but I am wondering if that was part of the thinking behind it--if people who already have pets find themselves on hard times and can't feed them, maybe create a way so they can, rather than the pet getting dumped at a shelter.
Having read the original article, I can tell you this is EXACTLY the thinking behind it. Back when the recession hit, shelters saw a huge spike in the number of pets surrendered by heartbroken families, and frankly, I am in favor of anything that helps put a stop to that.
About 10 years ago, our local Meals on Wheels announced such a program. It seems that drivers noticed the styro food containers on the floors of pet owners while making deliveries, and shared this info at meetings.
Instead of "scolding" the recipients, they contacted area pet stores for donations. Many, especially those locally-owned, were happy to help out. Now, pet food is included upon request.
Many of the MOW recipients are elderly. It's not exactly news that pets can brighten the lives of such people, many of whom are shut-ins who are socially isolated, or simply can't get out.
In those cases, donations help.
Do you think these elderly just didnt want the remainder of their MOW and gave it to their pet?
I image much of those meals go uneaten.
Not that I am opposed to pet food donations.
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LOL.
