SALISBURY TWP., Pa. – She was alone, found tied to a street pole recently near the border of Salisbury Township and Fountain Hill.
The dog was not just any breed.
A young golden retriever – among America’s most popular breeds – was abandoned and tethered with a thin yellow rope with no access to shade or water on a warm July day.
- There’s a growing number of at-large, loose or abandoned animals in the Lehigh Valley
- Salisbury Township Police Department said it’s on pace for a record-breaking year of dogs escaping their homes
- “Some days I feel like a 9-1-1 operator,” said Connie Kresge, who helps to run the Lost Pet Reporter for Lehigh County Facebook page
Pictures posted on the Salisbury Township Police Department’s Facebook page sparked anger and concern, not just for that dog, but for a canine crisis unfolding across the Lehigh Valley as some municipalities deal with a growing number of at-large, loose or abandoned animals.
“I just don’t understand how people can be so cruel,” Allentown resident Maggie Hallman said in a comment on the post.
The day before, Salisbury police found what appeared to be a young American Staffordshire Terrier in the area of Lehigh Parkway.
It came hours after the department said it was on pace for a record-breaking year of dogs escaping from their homes.
“It’s hard to pinpoint what happens but most of the time the dogs are just lost,” Salisbury Township Animal Control Officer Mike Sinko said.
“They get out, they chase deer, they’re out of their normal area and someone finds them. Usually, people are looking for them. But on occasion, there are dogs people just dump. It’s unfortunate. It’s just sad.”
Fortunately for the golden retriever, her story has a happy ending. She is still at the Lehigh Valley Humane Society waiting to be spayed, but will soon be adopted into a loving home in Macungie – a moment many other dogs in similar situations are still waiting for.
“I have a stack of papers on my desk of all the cats and dogs I’ve picked up lately. It is pretty large at the moment, and it is certainly more than normal,” Sinko said, lauding those who attend to the homeless, neglected and abused animals at shelters around the region.
‘It is very emotional’
“Lehigh Valley Humane Society has been so helpful over the years in taking the animals that we can’t find where they live. They do a great job taking care of them and adopting them out,” Sinko said.
“They take them through the clinic, give them all their shots. I really want to emphasize how fortunate we are to see that dedication and level of care they provide.”
That care is needed for dogs like the one Sinko attended to Thursday morning in the area of Bridget’s Way and Fish Hatchery Road.
“He had a broken jaw, couldn’t eat. His eye was real bad. They took him in right away,” Sinko said.
That dog joins the dozens of others now waiting for homes at the humane society, which last fall celebrated a $4 million expansion at 640 Dixon St. in Allentown. It included more than 100 new dog kennels, and the space was needed.
More than 50 dogs were available for adoption at the shelter as of Friday morning, according to the humane society website.
One of the people intimately familiar with their stories is Connie Kresge of Fountain Hill, who helps to run the Lost Pet Reporter for Lehigh County Facebook page, which has more than 23,000 followers.
“Some days I feel like a 9-1-1 operator between all the questions. We have an inbox. I talk to people privately. I post when I can, but it can be overwhelming,” Kresge said Friday morning.
Each day, photos of lost or missing animals from the area are shared on the page. Some are frantic messages from owners seeking a dog that got through an open gate, jumped a fence, slipped out the back door or ran off.
Others are posts of pets that have been found by a Good Samaritan, identified and reunited with their owners.
But Kresge also fears that many of them have been purposely abandoned, perhaps due to advanced age, illness and the cost of veterinary care.
“It is very emotional sometimes to see these photos and think about how these dogs are suffering. My heart bleeds for them.
“There are so many that we haven’t found yet. Sometimes when it gets to that point I think somebody took the dog in. They figure it was abandoned or let loose.
“Some of them we never get an answer to. But I think the majority we do reunite with the help of LVHS, the Sanctuary at Haafsville and more. They’re very good at letting me know who’s been brought in and reunited, and then I’ll update the post.”
Clear the shelters
Jackie Folsom, director of development for the Lehigh Valley Humane Society, said the shelter is near capacity.
"I would definitely agree that we are getting a lot of animals. Summer is our busy season every year, and so do expect to receive more this time of year," she said.
"We definitely have had a large number of loose dogs and stray dogs coming in. Our shelter is almost full, and I'm sure every other shelter in the area is very full."
"We definitely have had a large number of loose dogs and stray dogs coming in. Our shelter is almost full, and I'm sure every other shelter in the area is very full."Jackie Folsom, director of development for the Lehigh Valley Humane Society
She said if dogs coming in are not claimed within 48 hours they’re put up for adoption.
"August is Clear the Shelters month, so there’s no better time to think about it and raise awareness, and it’s a national initiative to get animals adopted," she said.
Throughout August, the humane society will offer free cat adoptions. The last weekend of the month, dogs over 30 pounds and at least six months old will also have their adoption fees waived.
"We are near capacity so that’s why it’s really important to use creative marketing and promotion and events like this to get animals out and into homes.
"I’ve heard people liken the broader issue here as a bathtub filling up and it’s draining, but more water is always being added. So we’re definitely looking for adopters and fosters at this point for people who want to help out an animal and give it a break from shelter life."
‘It’s your dog. Please, take care of it’
Efforts to reach Lehigh County Dog Warden Orlando Aguirre for this story were unsuccessful, and his voicemail box was full.
A recording on his phone reminds residents of the requirement to have their dogs licensed and vaccinated for rabies.
Some residents don’t understand the need to follow those laws, secure pets on their property or microchip and register or update the chip in their dog, according to Sinko.
“But this isn’t just a Salisbury Township Animal Control problem or a Salisbury Township Police Department problem,” he said.
“We’ve just had a bunch of dogs lately … tied to a post, tied to a fence and just left behind. A couple we don’t know where they came from. Some have been aggressive, but they’re just scared because they don’t know what to do or understand the situation they’ve been left in,” Sinko said.
“It’s hard to say if they’re abandoned. Each case is different. You have to assess each one as it comes, and if we do find the owner the first thing I do is usually give them a warning. The second time it’s a written violation, and after that, they get a citation.
“It’s hard to say if they’re abandoned. Each case is different. You have to assess each one as it comes."Salisbury Township Animal Control Officer Mike Sinko
“It’s not just that these animals are loose. It’s licensing, rabies shots, etc. Most times they have everything, but we give them a week to two weeks and say, ‘You have to get them up to date. You have to make sure your dog is properly secured on your property.’
“We sometimes hear, ‘Oh yeah. I’ll take care of it,’ and a couple of days later that dog is out again. It’s frustrating. It’s your dog. Please, take care of it and be responsible.”
As for that golden retriever waiting to head to her new forever home, she’s been given a name that conveys what the future of more dogs like her will hopefully look like.
Her new name is going to be Hope.
