'There's no excuse': RSPCA warns cases of animal neglect are on the rise

  • Staff at the RSPCA West Norfolk branch said there was 'no excuse' for animals being dumped

Cases of animal neglect are on the rise and could get even worse over Christmas, the RSPCA is warning.

Nationally the animal welfare charity has seen a worrying 25% year-on-year increase.

In the first nine months of 2024, the RSPCA recorded 803 incidents of neglect in Norfolk alone, compared to 659 last year, an increase of 22%.

It was a similar story in Cambridgeshire which saw 668 cases- an increase of 16%.

RSPCA superintendent Jo Hirst said: “The large 25% increase in the number of pet neglect calls we are taking is a major concern during our busy winter period when many people are facing more financial difficulties, and we fear this upsetting trend will continue.

“One call every four minutes is a frightening statistic. Coupled with this we have also seen a startling increase in abandonment cases up 30% in just three years.

“Sadly we expect the crisis to worsen as more people tend to struggle with increased costs around Christmas time with presents to buy and extra food shopping - along with energy bills."

Lincoln is one of the newest recruits at the West Norfolk RSPCA rehoming centre Credit: ITV News Anglia

Staff at the RSPCA's rehoming centre in King's Lynn in Norfolk are currently looking after 22 dogs, but are expecting another six more this week bringing them to capacity.

Staff fear they will see more dogs dumped before the year is out.

“They're absolutely neglected, where the spine is showing, their ribs are showing they've got sores," said branch manager Carl Saunders.

"It is just horrible, some of it. [There's also the] knock on effect of those conditions. Our vet bill is going to be up £15,000.

“There is no excuse. We would much rather people bring their dogs to us. There's no shame in it. There's no stigma as far as we're concerned.

"We have an application form on a website so you don't have to talk to anyone. You can just fill that form in and then we will handle it from there.”

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