Festive puppies dumped

The nine-week-old puppy was taken to the Canine Defence League at Adel after its new owners decided they did not want the dog, which was bought as a Christmas

present.

Amanda Sands, manager of the sanctuary said: "Suzie is not alone. A few weeks after Christmas the dogs start flooding in - as soon as people realise what is involved in caring for a pet."

The puppy was one of some 20 dogs thrown out with the Christmas wrapping and

decorations, which found their way to the pet rescue centre.

Ms Sands said: "We have had a lot brought in. It is not

necessarily puppies. It is older dogs that people are just fed up with. It is out with the old and in with the new.

"The problem is that we always work to capacity, with 80 dogs here at any one time and then there are more left at the gate."

Other animal rescue centres in the area were also stretched to the limit as uncaring owners left pets to fend for themselves.

A spokeswoman for the RSPCA said: "The main barometer that we have to go by is Leeds Animal Home, which covers Wharfedale. They reported that the main problem was in the run-up to Christmas when they had a tremendous amount of abandonments.

"The reasons that people were giving were that they were having relatives for Christmas and they could not cope with their pets as well. A lot of people also want to trade in their dog for a puppy. We are expecting the numbers to go up and up."

There was good news for a lucky few as people waited until after the holidays to give a home to a cat or dog.

Ms Sands said: "We get a lot of people who are sensible and think they will wait until after Christmas and that's a positive thing."

l Anyone interested in giving a home to a pet can contact the Canine Defence League on 0113 261 3194 or Leeds Animal Home on (0113) 2455132.

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