I hope my suspicions are incorrect. Tell me what you think.

[CatWoman]

In the past two weeks, most recently yesterday, I've seen well cared for and beautiful dogs wandering around in nice neighborhoods.

They seemed oblivious to the traffic, and the dangers of being in the middle of the street with cars zipping by.

I'm wondering if the owners of these dogs were possible victims of foreclosure, and just released the animals to roam free rather than an adult, responsible alternative.

[hedgehog]

1. A lot to people let a dog or cat loose figuring that it stands a better

chance of being adopted than it it were taken to a shelter. It's a major problem in rural areas near suburbs or cities. I don't want to encourage anyone, but two of our dogs were drop-offs as were four of our cats.

[lunatica]

2. My fear is that you're right in your suspicions

[Captain Hilts]

3. Packs, yes 'packs' of roaming dogs were a problem in Moscow in the early 90s

because of economic decline.

At one point the Moscow city govt. authorized shooting them because there were so many.

[MADem]

6. In Iran and Afghanistan and elsewhere in that region, packs of dogs aren't uncommon.

They do better in a pack than they do amongst humans, many of whom disdain them. It's a cultural prejudice.

Those dogs were smart, too--they knew who to approach and who to leave be. They knew I was a sucker and would give them some chow when ever I saw them. I never got robbed, either, probably because there was always a mangy mutt or two near my gate who would sound the alarm if a stranger approached.

[Captain Hilts]

12. The ones in Moscow were fascinating to watch. A pack of them latched onto

some other strays: young soldiers brought in from the hinterlands to work construction. The dogs liked sleeping in the sand on the construction site and being with the soldiers.

[calimary]

4. Undoubtedly. Where I live, the animal shelters are really hard-pressed, ever since

last fall when the bottom started dropping out. It's not just families left homeless - it's their pets that they can't afford to keep anymore. And their plight gets swept under the rug because there's just so much hurt out there among people.

[MADem]

5. What horrible and irresponsible people. Better to dump the dog at the pound than leave it to wander

and possibly be run over.

Call the dog officer so that the animals won't get hit and killed.

[Warpy]

7. They could be escapees who dug under the fence

or, like you said, they could be victims of foreclosure.

A call to animal control isn't out of the question.

Anyone who is foreclosed and can't take their furry friends with them needs to call the Animal Humane Association. The chance of adoption is small, but that's where they have the best chance of finding another family.

Dogs and cats left to their own devices don't do very well. They spend most of their time hungry, thirsty and very frightened.

It's a terrible thing to do to a friend.

[AngryOldDem]

8. That is another problem that's not being addressed.

These dogs will form packs, and eventually become feral, threatening public safety.

The decline of society continues apace...

[shadowknows69]

9. You know I've noticed the same around here Catwoman

I almost had to stop and get a black lab I saw near the road the other day. Our SPCA is overstuffed too, I don't even know that they're taking any animals right now.

[kickysnana]

10. Evidently many, many people are in deep denial

and think something will save them and just walk away at the last minute. They don't know where they will be. Perhaps they think they can come back for them and just can't. The newly homeless find themselves in a 24/7 fight for survival.

There was a TV program a couple weeks ago about a company in California that cleaned out homes after foreclosure. They do not recycle, or donate as they say there are no takers. They've haul hundreds of dumpsters out a month. What shocked me was that the house looked like the people were all away. Clothes, pictures, everything was still there. No damage or clutter.

Another show showed a family in another state where the bank hired someone to dump their possessions out in the yard and then they borrowed a pickup to move. But they didn't get it all done that day and when they left people swooped in and helped themselves. Again why didn't they do that the weekend before?

A long time neighbor of my elderly Dad had a married son who had racked up debt by refinancing at terrible terms putting his three kids through college and then they both lost their jobs at the same time. They never mentioned their money problems to him. He would have been glad to help out. Often if you can catch it early you can do something but by the time the credit is maxed out, credit report is trashed and you've cashed in your retirement it is way too late.

[mnhtnbb]

11. I saw a big German Shepherd wearing a halter collar walking down our street

yesterday; I did not recognize him from the neighborhood.

[lonestarnot]

13. Damn I hope not, but could be.

:shrug: Pssssst... Does he have a collar? Get the weenies...
:evilgrin: Couldn't resist, sorry.