After seeing a story Wednesday about an increase in pet abandonment linked, in part, to foreclosures, a reader whose family struggled through it last year wrote to ask about resources.

"How about posting some alternatives for animal lovers who are being foreclosed," suggested the woman, who asked that her name not be used. "Finding a place where you can take your [pets] without fear of them being killed in a week is extremely difficult."

Gwinnett's animal advocates say getting out ahead of the situation is crucial.

"The most important thing is to call as soon as you know," said Joan Sammond, director of the Georgia SPCA in Suwanee. "If you know a month or so in advance, it gives us time to help you try to place that pet. We do use the Internet as a means to showcase pets available for adoption," she said.

Sammond says her nonprofit found homes for about 1,000 animals in 2007, twice as many as it did in 2006.

Lt. Mary Lou Respess, manager of the Gwinnett County Animal Shelter, said people should reach out, even if the whole thing is something they'd rather not talk about.

"What I would suggest is they just ask everyone they come in contact with," Respess said.

That includes their church or workplace, Sammond added — as well as online networking sites.

"They can post online for foster homes," Sammond said.

"When military get deployed and they want their pets when they return, people will step up and foster for a year. They may be able to find the same kind of generosity for someone who's down on their luck for a while," Sammond said.

The reader wondered if there were places where pets could be delivered "no questions asked," to ease the burden on the family.

Respess said she'd never favor that.

"Pets can't tell us," about the state of their health or their needs, she said. "The more we know, the more likely they are to find a new home."

Kevin Bryant is the director of PALS (Pets Are Loving Support), an Atlanta nonprofit that provides care and support to pets of people living with critical illnesses or disabilities.

Anyone who can provide a statement of disability from a doctor and who earns less than $23,000 a year is eligible for the service. So are senior citizens.

"We're seeing an increase of people who are disabled and have lost their jobs," Bryant said, "and can't take care of their pets anymore."

He can help them, Bryant said, but he hears from many others he can't help.

"I feel bad because I don't really have that many places to direct them," he said.

All three organizations maintain a list of rescue groups, as does the state Department of Agriculture's Animal Protection Division.

There are about a dozen such groups in Gwinnett, said a staffer. A list can be faxed to anyone who calls 404-656-4914.