Homeless with Dogs: Help Us Help Them

Homeless with Dogs cofounder Patricia Zaid (second from left) and “most frequent volunteer” Marisela Kruckenberg receive delighted thanks from a best friend.

10:45am | You’ve seen them on the street dividers, on sidewalks in front of businesses, in shopping centers— people who live on the street or in hidden enclaves for a number of reasons. Sometimes, there are dogs with them, or even a cat. You may be torn between thoughts of “I have to give them something, or that animal will starve” or “How dare they play with my emotions?” or “What are they doing with a pet anyway?”

For Patricia Zaid, cofounder of Homeless with Dogs (HWD), the answer’s obvious: “The man or woman rescues the dog, and the dog rescues them,” she said.

Zaid and Liz Reyes, HWD’s other cofounder, have been helping homeless people give their pets what the unconditional love on both sides has trouble giving them: sustenance. Since the organization’s founding at the end of 2010, Zaid, Reyes and their volunteers have been giving out weekly rations of meals for canines as well as felines from 2 to 3 p.m. at the Drop-In Center at the First Congregational Church, 241 Cedar Avenue in Long Beach. Zaid has observed that the people who come to collect food, no matter what their circumstance or story, have two things in common: love for their pets and the need for the mutual companionship.

“Dogs protect folks in the riverbed,” said Brian, who was waiting outside with his dog for health and safety reasons, pet owners are not allowed to bring their dogs on the patio where the food is being distributed. “Also, they alert people when someone’s near.”

Zaid said that the complexion of the homeless has changed with the economy. There are the chronically homeless, but there are also those who have fallen on hard times, losing their jobs and their homes. Among them are people who could not part with their pets, especially if they had to leave them at a shelter where they’d most likely be euthanized. Others have rescued pets who have been left in someone’s backyard or inside the homes to die after they’d move out, and others have been left out in the street. It’s unarguably better to live in a car than to get hit by one.

“It’s not cruel at all [for homeless people to care for pets],” said Brooks, who lives in his car with his wife and three dogs. “I’m accountable for these dogs. I get them vaccinated and licensed. There are people who live in homes without such accountability. And I’m not taking them to be euthanized either!”

Zaid also said that people have told her that they dig in the trash for their own meals but use any money for feeding the pets. Homeless with Dogs was created ease that burden.

In late 2010, Zaid and Reyes were assisting at the opening of the dog park in Lincoln Park. “A woman came up to me and said, ‘Would you like to hear a good story?’ I love stories, so I said yes. She brought a gentleman over—he had a pit bull with him. He’d come because he’d been hassled a few times by the police, so it was very important for him to get the dog a rabies shot and a license. There was an ‘angel’ who’d given him money for this. While he was telling me his story, tears were coming to his eyes because he was so taken by this woman offering to pay. So I went back to our table and said to Liz, ‘You know, I feel something here.’ Before we left the park, Homeless with Dogs had been born.”

When the AKC dog show came to the Long Beach, Convention Center, Zaid and Reyes went to see if they could get food donations. They had no success until they spoke to Eukanuba officials, who promised them leftover food from the show. The next day, Reyes drove from the Convention Center with an entire vehicle filled with dog food.

“As soon as we had that dog food, we were in business,” Zaid said.

The next step was a venue, and they were pretty well fixed for that. Reyes was a volunteer at a clothing donation program at the Drop-In Center. She and Zaid met with Brad Lara-Gagne, the Center’s program director. He liked the idea, and Homeless with Dogs was running on all four legs.

In December 2010, Homeless with Dogs opened with 17 clients. Word got out through the meals program at the church and through the homeless grapevine. Zaid said that they now average 50 people waiting in line every Sunday for meals, and that number could be doubled or tripled because several of the people have more than one pet.

Corporations have been generous with food and supplies; besides Eukanuba, Zaid and Reyes applied for and received a grant from Walmart; Nutro, Animal Care Services, the Multi-Service Center and several other entities teamed up for a community event back in October (click here to read the account); and individual sponsors have been donating leashes, blankets and other necessities as well as food gift cards from Costco and Sam’s Club. Volunteers come in a couple of hours before the project begins running to bag food and give it out.

Liz Reyes and volunteer Kim Moore bag up the goodies for giving out.

Zaid, Reyes and the volunteers dispense counsel with the comestibles. “We particularly discuss spay/neuter,” Zaid said. “We have vouchers from the city, but our future goal is to somehow manage transportation for the procedure.”

Zaid said that some of their best moments are when their clients who have access to the Internet send them photos of their cats and dogs and write them about their rescue stories. You can feel the love for their pets, she said.

“They give a person a reason to get up in the morning—someone to take care of,” she said. “And the dogs, at least, take care of them, protecting their possessions. But I think that, mainly, it gives them hope.”

[Shortly after the writing of this article, Zaid was taken ill and is now recovering. Chad Robbins, HWD’s development director, is taking over the operation in her absence, along with Reyes. They will be distributing the pet food and other goodies Sunday from 2–3 p.m. at Homeless with Dogs will be handing out food this Sunday the 29th from 2-3pm at Cesar E Chavez Park, 401 Golden Ave., Long Beach. Patricia, get well soon—your flock awaits!]

Homeless with Dogs can be reached through their Facebook page by clicking here. Monetary donations are always useful and needed, as are dog beds, blankets, leashes, toys and other items (and don’t forget the cats). To donate, contact [email protected], which links to PayPal. Gift cards from Sam’s Club or Costco are preferable to pet food, as the Homeless with Dogs volunteers want to keep the diet consistent.