Dog charity Hope Rescue in Pontyclun warns of increase of 'pandemic puppies' coming into their care
ITV Wales journalist Issa Farfour reports
A dog rescue charity in South Wales says they're facing a surge in requests to take in unplanned or unsold litters of puppies.
Hope Rescue, in Llanharan, near Pontyclun, say the number of puppies arriving with them has more than trebled, compared to the same period last year, with the charity receiving requests to take in 85 puppies since the start of the year.
60 puppies came into Hope Rescue’s care between January and June 2024, compared to 14 puppies during the same period in 2023.
A further 15 puppies came into Hope Rescue’s care as part of their work supporting local authorities and Animal Licensing Wales to tackle low welfare and illegal breeding.
They say the increase is down to a rise in dog ownership during the pandemic, when many puppies born during this time weren't neutered, and are now having puppies themselves.
They say 97% of adult dogs arriving as strays or relinquished from owners at Hope Rescue during the last three months are unneutered.
They say a litter of four puppies, only one-week-old, arrived in their care this week, having been abandoned in a horse yard in Merthyr Tydfil.
The litter of one female and three males were abandoned without their mother.
Another recent example they gave was Robin the Pointer, who arrived at Hope Rescue after a call from her distressed owner, just as Robin began giving birth.
The new-born litter of eight puppies and Robin were immediately brought into the rescue centre and given the care they needed.
They say "the market for puppies has reached saturation point and, with no puppy buyers for the unplanned litters, desperate owners are contacting Hope Rescue for help.
"However, like the rest of the sector, Hope Rescue is operating at capacity with a rise in stray dogs and a slowing in the number of dogs being adopted. The puppy boom has truly gone bust."
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