What do the think the positives, if any, of this are?
Well, there are of course positives in that it brings a higher awareness to the general population about adopting animals. Some of the larger rehoming organisations such as Battersea Cats and Dogs Home get their message out through TV programmes, radio interviews and selling merchandise which will ultimately bring more people through their doors to rehome animals in need.
What do you think the main negatives of this are?
There are some very sad negatives unfortunately. Higher awareness of the general public means that there are more people wanting to adopt animals and this leads to many people ruthlessly filling that supply to the detriment of the animals. When animals are bred well it takes time and diligence which doesn’t bring quick money in for these people. So it leads to some people breeding with animals that haven’t got full health checks, animals being inappropriately and exhaustively bred which effects their welfare. The outcome of bad breeding can then mean that the animal produced doesn’t have good gene’s which causes ongoing problems for that animal and the new owners. Sadly, bad breeders also don’t look after the animals born to a good standard. For example, young puppies need to be well stimulated and introduced to many things in life to become well adjusted dogs – if they are kept in cages with no light and human contact this effects their development for the rest of their life and they often can’t cope when homed to their adoptive family.
Do you think an increasing number animals have died because of this?
Yes I do. This is because some animals are born with genetic problems that mean they can’t live a healthy life. Some animals may also be put to sleep because of behaviour issues that arise as they can’t cope with the family life they are put into.
Are there any other factors that you believe are greatly impacting the adoption of animals at the moment?
Yes that’s very topical actually – the current Covid pandemic has meant that people are at home more and they have considered that they can have animals as they are not travelling so much and are not out at work so much. This has impacted the supply and demand of the pet industry hugely.
