Amsterdam gets its first food bank for animals
The very idea that people have to go to the food bank in the Netherlands, considering all the money and resources the poor have at their disposal, is shameful and embarrassing for many Dutch people. Not necessarily for the people who depend on the food banks, but the general view is that food banks should not exist and are painful to talk about.
But there’s a crisis on, and according to Animal Rescue Nederland, the first thing poor people skimp on is pet food. Animal Rescue Nederland is currently talking to several pet food manufacturers about putting together food parcels for people’s pets.
Will a food bank for animals be less of a taboo than for humans or will people comment about poor people owning pets they can’t afford in the first place? I wonder.
Are people abandoning their pets?
I can’t imagine people are all of a sudden abandoning their pets, but I really would not know. I know people do when they go on vacation in the summer, if we can believe the press.
Good question.
Here in New England, municipal animal control departments, humane societies and rescue shelters say there’s been a higher rate of abandoned animals. From ferrets to cats, even some people are asking that their horses be put down; the owners cannot afford to feed or shoe them. What’s shocking is parents are even abandoning pets given as Christmas gifts because their spoiled brat didn’t like the kind of dog they received or the color of the cat!
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@Jay That last part is sad, but happens a lot in many countries. My cousin used to go ‘hunting’ for dwarf rabbits dumped in the forest after Easter. Of course, all he wanted was a pet for free.
Jay Vos, you have a new reader in Boston… me.
Locally, most of such food drives go to local shelters. And ours are chronically packed. So, this is a seemingly good idea.