AUBURN, N.Y.-- Marvin McQuaid and his wife, MaryLou, have a dog, Dottie.

They say they love her--and all animals--which is why they were eager to help out friends who had lost their jobs, by giving them pet food.

"We wanted to help them and my wife says, 'Why don't you go to the food pantry?' And they said, 'They don't have pet food.' And so my wife said there should be a pet food pantry as well as a people food pantry," said Marvin McQuaid, president of the pet food pantry.

The McQuaids started a pet food pantry in their home, and have been running it for more than a decade.

Area businesses and individuals donate the food. And the McQuaids give it out to people who fall on hard times, so their pets don't have to suffer.

"What do you do? Go to your little boy and say, 'Sorry, we have to put the dog to sleep because dad lost his job?'" McQuaid said.

The McQuaids say they give out thousands of pounds of food a month. But lately, they say they've had a hard time keeping up.

"As the need is increased because of the state our economy is in, the donations have gone down," McQuaid said.

McQuaid says his whole shed is typically filed with food. But following the monthly giveaway Tuesday, there's hardly any left. And he's already thinking about next month.

"By the third week, usually the third Tuesday of the month, or the fourth Tuesday, depending how the Tuesdays fall, we have a giveaway, that we won't have enough to have a giveaway. And that concerns me," he said.

The McQuaids say they hope more donations come in, so they can keep helping people...and pets in need.

"I told my son, you get warm, fuzzy feeling. He says that's because you're helping warm, fuzzy creatures," McQuaid said.

And their loving, and grateful, owners.

The McQuaids are asking for donations of all pet food. But they say they're especially in need of canned cat food.

The pet food pantry is at 93 Owasco Street, Auburn, NY 13021

(315) 253-2878
(315) 253-3029

petfoodpantryauburn.org