Shelter compiles exact reasons for huge spike in surrenders after Christmas

Last year [2016], the Dogs Trust rehoming centers in Glasgow and West Calder, Scotland received 703 calls from pet owners looking to surrender their dogs in the weeks immediately following the holidays.

Staff members fielded excuses such as “I got him as a secret Santa present” and “She wags her tail far too much.”

The owners were clearly unmoved by the rescue’s slogan “A dog is for life, not just for Christmas.”

Dogs Trust is the UK’s largest canine rescue organization with a network of 21 rehoming centers caring for approximately 15,000 dogs every year.

As yet another holiday season rolls around, they have issued a reminder to the public that dogs are not novelty items to be tossed out when the newness wears off.

That reminder comes in the form of a video entitled Why I Left You. Although scripted as a comedy, the excuses the actors give are sadly all-too real. Each were offered by real dog owners as they relinquished their pups to Dogs Trust last season.

The entire list is below.

• I won a free holiday (vacation) and I couldn’t take my dogs with me
• He ate meat and we are vegetarian and didn’t want meat in our home
• She was too friendly and wanted to greet every dog and human we met on a walk
• Now that he has lost weight he is too energetic
• She grew bigger than we thought she would
• He was panting too much
• If I’d known anything about beagles, I wouldn’t have got one
• I had to spend an hour a day hoovering (vacuuming) as he shed so much hair
• He is always staring at me - even when I am eating
• I got him as a secret Santa present but I don’t have room for a dog
• He didn’t like it when we tried to dress him up
• She wags her tail far too much
• He doesn’t match our furniture
• She sleeps in her own dog bed all night – I thought she would want to sleep in my bed

According to a new survey of more than 2000 Scottish dog owners:

• 16% spent less than two weeks researching before buying a dog.
• One in 15 confessed to buying a dog simply because it was a cute accessory.
• 5% bought or received a dog as a Christmas gift.
• 71% believing their pet would cost them less than the actual cost of £10,000 (about $13,400) during its lifetime.

The rescuers at Dogs Trust are hoping that this year will somehow be different, yet bracing themselves for another holiday influx of unwanted dogs. Claire Carney, assistant manager at the Glasgow rehoming center, said:

“We really hope this Christmas is the year our nation of animal lovers finally takes heed of our slogan ‘A dog is for life, not just for Christmas’ and we don’t see dogs discarded because their owners have not considered the lifetime commitment of dog ownership.”

Before deciding to bring home a new pet, visit Dogs Trust for helpful downloads such as “Can You Afford A Dog?” and “Do You HaveTime for a Dog?”

(Source: iheartdogs.com, Dina Fantegrossion, December 13, 2017)

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