A desperate time of year for unloved cute puppies

Jan 2 2008 by Wendy Horton, South Wales Echo

FOR most of us Christmas and New Year are the best times of the year.

But for our canine friends the festive period really can be a dogs’ life.

Many pets are forgotten as their owners enjoy the merriment of the season.

Hundreds of dogs in South Wales are left homeless after the novelty of having a cute puppy for Christmas wears off. It’s also a time when older dogs are turfed out as debt begins to take hold.

Most of these abandoned animals are taken in by local authorities who send dogs to boarding kennels known as pounds.

Some face a death sentence as certain authorities destroy dogs usually after seven days if they are unclaimed.

The Stray Dog survey of 2007 carried out on behalf of the Dogs’ Trust showed that 105,068 stray dogs passed through local authority pounds in the past year.

Although destruction figures were slightly down on the year before it is a number which animal welfare people Hope Rescue, based at Caerphilly, believe is still way too high.

Its handful of dedicated volunteers work tirelessly to help save as many dogs as possible by transporting those ‘at risk’ to safe havens around the UK in the hope the reprieve will earn them a good home.

Despite their best efforts in and around South Wales stray dog figures are rising especially around the festive period.

Vanessa Waddon, of Hope Rescue, who set up the charity with another dog lover, Alyson Snowden, in 2005, said: “The onset of Christmas always brings on an influx of stray dogs.

“Irresponsible breeders will ensure they have litters of puppies ready for the Christmas market, also ensuring they have a nice little income for Christmas.

“However when they fail to sell the puppies before Christmas they will then be dumped and the rescues will be expected to pick up the pieces.

“Many of the puppies that do get sold will then end up in rescue after Christmas when the novelty of owning a puppy wears off and the responsibility becomes too much.”

In the run up to Christmas, Hope Rescue saw a 50 per cent rise in the number of dogs taken to the pounds.

Their weekly intake of animals for such a small organisation went up from 15 to around 25 dogs and strays continue to pour in.

Vanessa said: “The pounds are filling up, if they are not already full.

“Unfortunately many of the larger national rescues close their doors to intakes weeks before Christmas.

“It’s then left to small volunteer based rescues such as Hope Rescue to be on call to deal with the seasonal casualties.”

However this year has been an extremely tough time for Hope Rescue which are currently short of funds.

Vanessa said: “Due to severe lack of funds we have had to cut back this year to four kennels and the situation is desperate. We are keeping our foster homes open but our concern is we won’t have enough to deal with the influx.”

To donate, call Donna Valentine on 07870 529650 or visit www.hoperescue.org.uk

wendy.horton@mediawales.co.uk