Abandoned dog appeal (From Oxford Mail)

Abandoned dog appeal

2:00pm Tuesday 11th September 2012 in Wallingford

STAFF at an Oxfordshire Animal Sanctuary are appealing for people to offer homes to abandoned dogs because they do not have room for any more.

There are now 109 dogs in kennels at the Stadhampton sanctuary and staff are urging dog lovers to come forward and offer new homes.

The sanctuary made its appeal at an open day on Sunday.

Acting warden Rachel Patam said: “We have dogs, from Jack Russells to Rottweilers, and they all need new homes.

“Dogs are brought in for all sorts of reasons — sometimes marriages break up or people find the dogs are too hard to look after. We are also looking for people to volunteer as dog walkers.”

The Watlington Road sanctuary also looks after 150 cats, and cares for rabbits and guinea pigs.

It relies on volunteers and donations. According to the charity Dogs Trust, there has been a six per cent drop in the number of stray dogs in the UK in the past year, to 118,932.

The charity said it believed the fall in the number of abandoned dogs was due to education campaigns and microchipping programmes.

For more information on adopting a dog, call the Oxford Animal Sanctuary on 01865 890239.