BALTIMORE — The Little Italy community is coming together to lend a helping hand to our furry friends.
As people across the country struggle economically, Little Italy residents want to make sure their pets aren't forgotten.
WATCH: Little Italy community collects food for Baltimore Humane Society
"There is tough economic times for a lot of people and that also means there's a lot of tough economic times for their pets," said Blaire Postman, founder of Cat Ladies for America.
Wednesday night, Postman partnered with Benny's in Little Italy to collect food and raise money for the Baltimore Humane Society's Pet Food Bank.
Christina Eater came by to drop off cat food, telling WMAR 2 News why it was important to her.
"It just breaks my heart every time I see someone having to give up an animal, which I don't know. I feel like with people struggling with housing right now, that's happening even more. And it's just so important that there's somewhere animals can go, and I want to support that," Eater said.
Benny's co-owner, Joe Benny Gardella, said he knows how expensive it is to be a pet owner.
"Between vets and grooming and food, not everyone has that luxury where they can dish out the income for that, so whenever there's an event geared towards helping pets, we're all about it."
Co-owner Joshua McLaughlin told WMAR 2 News that coming together to support one another is what Little Italy is all about.
"We're a very close-knit community here. You know your neighbor here in Little Italy, and your neighbor knows you; they know your kids," McLaughlin said.
Postman said the time to help is now, as we continue seeing more animal shelters post on social media struggling and asking for assistance.
"It's devastating. I don't think I'm alone to say that I believe that there's a lot of important reasons to take care of our furry friends, but one of them is that those furry friends take care of us."
Head here to donate to the Baltimore Humane Society.
