A request from Fetcher Dog with regards the current surrendering of dogs situation in the UK!

Today alone we have had ten calls and several messages from people wanting to surrender their dogs. That does not include the dogs we have been told about from the pounds that have put to sleep dates already set.

We cannot take in more dogs until we home some of the dogs we already have.

Rescue centres are full to bursting and the calls and messages from people needing to give up their dogs do not seem to be slowing down.

This situation is not made any better by the people who continue to breed their dogs or buy pups from breeders only to ask us to take them in a couple of months later.

Pounds are not only full of loving dogs with no behavioural or health issues BUT tiny puppies who are just dumped because of accidental litters or because they got slightly too old to sell.

Please think long and hard before you buy or adopt a dog, it is not a decision to enter into lightly and if you do end up getting a dog, please don’t try to surrender them as soon as you encounter one behaviour that is undesirable instead of putting in the work to help that dog settle properly and learn how to adapt to its new environment.

So many of the calls I get are from people who have had the dog such a small amount of time and are expecting too much too soon from their pups.

We take in as many dogs as we can and know that so many people in are terrible situations where they have very valid reasons why they need to give up their dogs but most of the calls we get aren’t like this.

People threatening to put their dogs down if we don’t take them does not help anyone and makes our jobs even harder. 

We will always take in more dogs if we have space.

Please go easy on rescue centre staff.

All the rescues I have spoken to are in the same situation and are trying their best to help as many dogs as we can.