CUMBERLAND COUNTY, Pa. — Surrendering a pet is one of the most difficult decisions an owner can make. Knowing where to surrender that animal can be just as difficult.
Animal surrenders are on the rise across the nation as the cost of care goes up and rescue centers are at capacity.
Some pet owners have had to take drastic measures to ensure their animals will be cared for, including one woman from San Antonio Texas who took her two dogs across the country to surrender them at Speranza Animal Rescue in Cumberland County.
Janine Guido, founder of Speranza Animal Rescue pulled into the driveway early one Tuesday morning and found two surprises. Atticus and Shadow, two pit bull mixes dumped with a letter saying, "Please save us, we are good boys." At first angry, Guido read the letter and quickly brought the dogs in for care.
Both dogs were apprehensive, but Shadow showed the most aggression, likely due to stress.
Guio contacted other Speranza staff, informing them of what she discovered. Ashley Maurice, a dog coordinator for Speranza, says she first noticed the poor condition of Atticus and Shadow.
“They were in crates; they had tied black trash bags to the top of them. Atticus had some flea dermatitis with his skin missing, his fur and stuff missing down his back and his skin being in rough condition,” Maurice said.
Speranza has a strict 'no dumping' policy. Signs are plastered throughout the property that threaten litigation if someone is caught surrendering their animal without contacting the rescue center first.
Luckily, space was available in the kennel for both dogs. Due to their stress, the dogs had to be separated from one another to minimize the chance of a fight.
The letter attached to their crates had very little information about them, such as their exact age and medical history, making it even more difficult for the staff to determine what level of care they needed.
“It’s best to not just drop your pet off at any rescue or any shelter at any location, it's better off to reach out, talk to someone so that way we get the full story of your dog,” Maurice said.
While reading the letter, Maurice and other staff learned the previous owner traveled twenty-five hours from San Antonio, Texas to surrender the dogs.
The letter alluded to the dogs belonging to a family member before passing on to the unknown woman’s care. The woman mentioned in the letter how her family lives within a tight budget and couldn’t afford to care for the dogs anymore.
Despite Speranza’s ‘no dumping’ policy, Guido made an exception based on the information included in the letter.
“The letter definitely broke everyone down, it also made everyone feel emotional to think that someone saved up their savings to drive twenty-five hours, basically across the country,” Maurice said.
The previous owner could not find a closer rescue willing to accept Atticus and Shadow. She cited that their pit-bull mix made other shelters apprehensive about taking in the animals. The woman did not mention how she found Speranza.
This isn't the first time Speranza has had animals surrendered.
“Often we get people calling, emailing, texting, Facebook messaging saying they're financially no longer in a position to care for their pet,” Maurice said.
Speranza staff members emphasized they will not accept any animal surrenders going forward. Anyone caught abandoning their animal is subject to prosecution.
For now, Atticus and Shadow are safe inside their kennels. But their future is unknown.
It might take several years for the dogs to become social and will likely cost Speranza hundreds of dollars in veterinary care.
“That's kind of our plan going forward is to get them medical care and hopefully they learn that they can trust us,” Maurice told FOX43.