Dogs are being abandoned in these Pa. woods, animal activists say

A growing number of abandoned dogs are reportedly being discovered in and around a wooded section in the West Mount Airy neighborhood of Philadelphia, according to a story from the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Activists also told the Inquirer that cats as well as dogs have been found abandoned in other locations in northwest Philly.

“It’s truly an issue,” Aminda Edgar, 45, a volunteer with the citywide nonprofit Green Street Rescue, told the Inquirer. “and more overwhelming this summer.”

According to Edgar, at least four dogs were found between April and June in Carpenter’s Woods, located Wissahickon Valley Park, compared with three found there in 2021. Dead dogs have been found in the area as well, including one in a box covered by a raincoat.

And activists say there are more animals loose in the area that haven’t been catalogued yet.

“There’s a mind-set, often with dogs, of ‘I can’t take care of him. Let me set him free,’” Samantha Holbrook, president of Citizens for a No-Kill Philadelphia, told the Inquirer. “But these are domesticated animals used to being given food and water, and not able to survive in the woods.”

Many times these former pets are not spayed or neutered, meaning that they will likely reproduce.

The general increase in abandonment is thought to be due to the large number of pets that were adopted during the pandemic. Now that many people have gone back to work, they don’t have the time or inclination to take care of their pets any longer.

Read the full story over at Inquirer.com.