Ex-CPD officer on a new beat: rescuing abandoned and stray dogs
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Only on 2.
Some animal advocates are calling it a crisis, one that's spilling out into the streets of Chicago.
Dogs being dumped and abandoned at staggering rates. CBS 2's Andrew Ramos found a Chicago retiree who's making it her mission to rescue those stray dogs.
For one retired CPD officer, the southwest side of Chicago, while unofficial, has become her most challenging beat. For the past 10 years, Cindy who asked we not use her last name, has volunteered her time to find and capture strays, mostly dogs, roaming city streets.
It's a trend that she said has spiraled out of control in the past year.
"It seems to be never ending. You know you get up every day and there's a deceased animal, or there's dogs roaming or someone lost their dog. It just seems to be continuous," Cindy said.
While some of these pups have rightful owners, others are among the unwanted, dumped and left to fend for themselves. There could be a number of reasons.
"You know, we have inflation, vet costs are extremely high right now, people can't afford procedures," said Jeanette Garlow of Lost Dogs Illinois.
Due to overcrowding, city shelters have a wait list for surrenders, leading the desperate to do the unthinkable. In one case, a dog was tied to a fence, abandoned in Little Village. Her story posted on Facebook.
"If they are being evicted or say, they are leaving for a family emergency they don't have time to wait," said Cindy. "So a lot of times, they're just putting their animals on the street."
According to data from Chicago Animal Care and Control, city shelter intakes of stray dogs have been steadily rising since 2020, while surrenders, where owners turn in their unwanted dogs, have been stagnant.
For stray dogs alone, intakes for 2023 have surged 29% from this time last year. Jeanette Garlow runs the Lost Dogs Illinois website.
"I don't want to blame the pandemic, but I think the pandemic has a little bit to do with this. You know there's a lot of reasons why this is happening," Cinday said.
Now, finding a solution to this crisis appears to be the million dollar question. CBS 2 reached out to Chicago Animal Care and Control to get a better understanding of what they are doing to remedy this situation, but have not heard back.
