Animal cruelty cases are on the rise both locally and statewide, and that concerns us mightily.

Animal cruelty cases across Northeast Michigan increased 50% between 2020 and 2022, the most recent year for which data was available, according to figures local police agencies report to the Michigan State Police, News staff writer Temi Fadayomi reported recently.

Alpena County saw a sharp increase in reported animal abuse cases in those years, with 10 incidents in 2022, compared to five in 2021 and six in 2020. Presque Isle County reported no cases in 2022, down from one in 2021 and two in 2020. Montmorency County reported two cases in both 2022 and 2021, while no cases were reported in 2020. Alcona County reported no such cases in any of those three years.

Statewide, Michigan reported 883 cases of animal cruelty in 2022, a significant rise from 663 cases in 2021 and 496 cases in 2020.

Police and prosecutors are currently handling two startling examples of such cases:

In Alpena County, more than 160 animals were removed from a property on Taylor Hawks Road and a 41-year-old woman faces a felony and misdemeanor charges. And in Montmorency County, a 56-year-old man faces charges after at least 75 animals were seized.

Owning animals requires great responsibility. The animals count on us to provide the proper care and nutrition, and abdication of that responsibility is just plain wrong.

If you don’t think you can care for an animal, don’t buy it or adopt it. Know your limitations. Know your finances. Know what you can and can’t do. And only obtain an animal if you’re entirely confident in your ability and willingness to take proper care of it.

And we urge every Northeast Michigander to alert authorities if they even suspect animal abuse, neglect, or cruelty. Often, such cases go unnoticed — because animals have no voice to speak out for themselves — until someone steps forward to tell police about the wrongdoing.