Birmingham Dogs Home reports huge surge in abandoned dogs

• Report by Charlotte Cross

A huge surge in the number of dogs being abandoned and given away has been reported by Birmingham Dogs Home.

It says it dealt with 126 abandoned dogs in the first week of December, that's more than they usually see in a month.

Rachel Frost, Birmingham Dogs Home, said: "We're not quite sure what happened, whether you know, people are just getting their dogs and it's a bit too much for them so they're having to relinquish their dogs from what could be veterinary treatments.

At the same time, after almost two years of the pandemic, donations have dropped.

Rachel continued: "Unfortunately, yes we are seeing a bit of a decrease in donations, but an increase in dogs. It's been an incredibly tough couple of months for our teams.

"They were working long hours, they've got lots of dogs to walk to feed and like anything, it costs a lot of money for us as well to be able to keep our dogs and give them the best care possible."

Supporters have been sending in donations of toys and doggie snacks.

So while they're waiting for a new family, at least they'll have something to celebrate.