Pet owners feeling pinch of economic downturn

By Jessica Groover
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In the Cabarrus Spay Neuter Clinic’s basement, there are many boxes of cat and dog treats, but only several bags of food.

“We get a lot of treats,” said Darlene Shotts, office assistant manager at the clinic and a volunteer for the Humane Society. “Treats are fine, but pets can’t survive off of treats.”

Shotts, along with the Humane Society of Concord and Greater Cabarrus County and the clinic, began a pet food drive this week. The goal is, for anyone who can afford pet food, to donate it, and for a pet owner who cannot afford it, to receive it.

“We want to help them through the rough times so they don’t lose their pets,” Shotts said.

Anyone who wants to donate may do so between 9 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays at the clinic in Concord.

Shotts began her efforts in March with the intention of providing pet food for owners who could not afford it. She reached out to Cooperative Christian Ministry and the local department of social services, asking them to direct anyone who needed help paying for pet food to her.

During the last month, the hotline at the Humane Society received about 15 to 20 callers a week asking about how to get food for their pet. Shotts said the hotline might have received one caller a week with that request a year ago.

She guessed the change was due to job loss and the cost of living increasing.

“With all those people losing jobs, they keep calling us for help because they don’t want to lose their pet,” Shotts said.

Jodi Jordan, a volunteer at the clinic, was in the same situation. After leaving her job more than a year ago and waiting for her unemployment assistance, she and her husband worried about how they would feed their 15 cats and one dog. 

Jordan acquired most of her pets after people had deserted them near her house.

“I would get up in the morning and think, ‘What am I going to feed them?’” Jordan said. “If I didn’t have money to buy my and my husband’s food, I didn’t have money to buy my cats food.”

Jordan began volunteering at the clinic and has received free pet food in return.

The clinic has received some food that could not be sold from businesses such as Food Lion, but the demand at the clinic has become too high to help everyone.

Now that the pet food drive has begun, Shotts said the clinic will wait about a month and then announce a day to have people come and receive food and treats for their pet. 

Not just anyone will be able to receive the pet food. Those who attend will have to show an unemployment check, something showing assistance from the Department of Social Services or another type of proof that they have are unable to buy pet food.

Anyone who is interested in donating or receiving pet food may contact Shotts at 704-784-1066.

• Contact reporter Jessica Groover: 704-789-9152.