For some, this means deciding whether to give up a member of the family.

More pet owners are struggling to pay for food and veterinary care, and some are being forced to abandon their animals when they move or relinquish them to shelters.

More than half of all U.S. households own a pet and, on average, the annual cost of ownership runs between $400 to $800 for food, supplies, and medical care, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Pet-food pantries, animal shelters, and other nonprofits are helping to alleviate costs for owners who have fallen on hard times. But many of these organizations are straining to keep up.

"I think we're all going through economic struggles right now with the way the business environment is," said Brigitte Farrell, executive director of the Frederick County Humane Society in Maryland.

Friends in Need

So far this year, Pikes Peak Pet Pantry in Colorado Springs, Colorado, has donated nearly three tons of cat and dog food to needy locals.

Darlene McCaslin, a self-described cat rescuer, started the pantry last September after noticing more people were considering giving up their pets due to finances.

Twice a week a steady flow of cars pulls up to the storage unit where the organization operates to load up on bags of food and kitty litter-no questions asked.

"We give help to anyone who needs it," said McCaslin, who has helped individuals in seven other states start their own pet pantries.

About 20 miles (32 kilometers) outside of downtown Chicago, Illinois, long lines also form each month at the Animal Welfare League's pet food bank.

At the same time, the league's low-cost veterinary clinic is handling more cases than ever before, said Linda Estrada, the group's director and president.

"We have people who come to our clinic and have $12 to their name," she said. "It's so sad."

But increased demand for medical care and food, combined with an influx of abandoned animals at its shelter, are financially crippling the nonprofit, she said.

The group has therefore put out more urgent pleas to the community asking for donations.

Meanwhile, United Animal Nations, a disaster response and welfare organization in Sacramento, California, is seeing a surge in applications for its financial assistance grants.

Continue to part II...

Source: nationalgeographic.com