Owners ‘dump old dogs in favour of Christmas puppies’

CRUEL-HEARTED dog owners are kicking out their old pets and replacing them with new Christmas puppies, animal welfare workers revealed yesterday.

Hundreds of loyal family pets were dumped in the weeks leading up to Christmas, said Limerick Animal Welfare spokeswoman Niamh Allen.

“This has been one of busiest holiday periods ever and we have found many older dogs thrown out by their owners before Christmas,” Ms Allen said.

These abandoned dogs are left with nowhere to go and many end up in the pound, where they will be put down unless someone claims them.

Several dogs pick up injuries and are often attacked before they even get to the pound, she said.

“Most groups like ourselves won’t give out puppies before Christmas but we can’t do anything about people throwing out older dogs,” Ms Allen said.

“It’s a vicious circle because these new puppies may suffer the same fate down the road.”

Animal welfare workers have also been collecting dozens of puppies which have been abandoned since Christmas Day.

“It’s getting very busy and a lot of calls are beginning to come in now.”

This situation is expected to worsen next week when children return to school and dogs bought for Christmas are forgotten about.

ISPCA honorary secretary Angela McCarthy last night appealed for homes for abandoned dogs.

“These older dogs are a lot more difficult to rehouse. The numbers of these dogs found during holiday times is growing all the time,” Ms McCarthy said.

Several people who went on holidays during Christmas failed to make proper arrangements for their animals and many of these pets are still wandering the streets, says the ISPCA.

“I think the phenomenon of people giving pets as presents is going but the irresponsibility is still there,” Ms McCarthy said.