A suburban animal shelter is asking for help after organizers said pet food and other supplies were taken from a donation box.
The president of the Animal Welfare League called what happened a “huge loss” for the nonprofit and dozens of homeless animals in its care.
Video surveillance from Sunday, May 3 shows two people taking items from a large donation box outside of the shelter in Chicago Ridge.
“I received a call from one of my employees,” said Chris Higens, president of the Animal Welfare League. “He was walking past the doorway to feed and treat the animals, when he noticed someone in donation bin. He opened the door and told them to stop-stop it. They just ignored him.”
Higens said they called the Chicago Ridge Police Department. Officers arrived and took a report.
“Unfortunately, the car did not have any plates,” she said. “Why would somebody do this to our animals? There is no reason for it. If you need help – come in and ask, but don’t just come and steal.”
Higens said the people got away with dog food, cat food, beds and blankets. Donations are starting to come in, but the shelter needs more, she said.
“We care for a lot of special needs animals here in addition to homeless animals, lots of them with medical conditions,” she shared. “We put a lot of money into caring for our animals, and it hurt us very badly. We have gotten quite a bit of blankets, but what we really need is food.”
Police told NBC Chicago they are investigating and a detective has been assigned to the case.
If you would like to donate food or other items to the Animal Welfare League, visit their website here.
