Help to give a dog a new home today

YOUR help is needed to give a dog a new home this New Year as the number looking for adoption rises.

The past year have been one of the worst ever for animal shelters and the situation is almost at crisis point after the Christmas period.

Helping Hands Dog Rescue, based in Aston, rescues dogs from pounds across the country and tries to re-home them.

And they are busier than ever as more and more people give up their dogs because they can no longer afford to look after them.

Carina Brunt, who helps runs the rescue centre, said the kennels are now ‘fit to bursting.’

“We took a group of 10 Staffie dogs which were all due to be put down. We’re now looking after 14 Staffie dogs and we can’t get them all in the kennels so some have had to go to a boarding kennel.”

“This time of year is always slow in terms of adoption. It tends to pick up again in the summer when the warmer weather comes.”

Carina said people do not realise what looking after a dog involves.

“People get them and don’t realise what a dog needs and what it takes to look after one so they dispose of them how they can,” she said.

“All our dogs come from the pound. Most of the time they have already been given up and are set to be put down.”

“As soon as we re-home one dog, we go to the pound and get another one. Just the other day we re-homed a dog on the Saturday and we were at the pound first thing Monday morning when it opened.”

The economic climate has been a big factor in people giving up their dogs, according to Carina.

“We have had some (dogs given up) due to job losses and people generally saying that they can’t afford to look after one anymore or they don’t have the time to look after one.”

There is also a similar situation at Thornberry Animal Sanctuary.

The North Anston-based charity has had an influx of unwanted dogs given as Christmas presents.

Sarah Frogatt, of Thornberry Animal Sanctuary said: “Since we reopened following the New Year break the phone has not stopped ringing.”

“When will people learn not to give pets as presents? We expect to be full to capacity and this puts a huge strain on sanctuaries such as ours.”

For more information on adopting a dog from Helping Hands Dog Rescue call Carina on 07773631802. To contact Thornberry Animal Sanctuary call 01909 564399 between 11am and 3pm, seven days a week.

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