RSPCA looking for home for Dorset dog Pierre after 128 days in their care
The Lurcher crossbreed's being looked after at the Ashley Heath centre
A Lurcher crossbreed's in need of a new home, after the RSPCA's had him in their care for 128 days so far.
Pierre is being looked after at the charity's Ashley Heath centre |newtab) and is among nearly 120 animals nationally that haven't been rehomed after 100 days.
The animal welfare cause say they're seeing rescue animals spend longer waiting for new families than ever before.
Across England and Wales, the average length of time dogs, cats and rabbits are having to wait before someone adopts them has risen by 31% over the past five years - from 31.7 days in 2019 to 41.4 days in 2023.
That also means many rehoming centres are bursting at the seams and unable to take in new animals - with many in costly emergency boarding centres while they wait for space.
Staff at Ashley Heath say Pierre has a real zest for life and although he still has a little way to go on his training journey, he would make a fun and rewarding companion to the lucky family who chooses him.
It's hoped the charity's Adoptober campaign will be the time for him to finally find his forever home.
Karen Colman, who leads the RSPCA team finding places for rescued animals, said:
“We are appealing to potential adopters to - where possible - consider rehoming pets which have spent a particularly long time waiting for their forever home at our centres.
“We have so many absolutely wonderful dogs, cats and rabbits who through absolutely no fault of their own are sitting at rescue centres waiting patiently for the next chapter of their lives to begin. That chapter cannot start without the public coming forward to offer them homes.
“As well as the lucky animals who tend to fly out of our centres into new homes, there are others who have more specific rehoming requirements because of the environments and conditions they were subjected to before being rescued.
“Very sadly, these are the animals we find most challenging to find new homes for.
“We are especially keen for those people with higher levels of pet-owning experience and patience to step forward and consider adopting one of our more ‘hard to rehome’ animals, because the situation has reached a crisis point.
“Spaces at our rehoming centres are like gold dust. The longer rescue animals remain unadopted, the longer others have to wait for a space at our rehoming centres.
“There’s a log-jam that prevents another newly rescued animal from getting a rehoming place. We currently have hundreds of animals in our care forced to wait in temporary and emergency boarding accommodation because pets already at our rehoming centres are not being adopted fast enough.
“Our rehoming centres are crying out for people who have the desire, dedication, time, facilities and willingness to step forward and offer to adopt our long stay animals. They can do this with the confidence that the RSPCA rehoming team will give them all the help, advice and support they need to make the animals transition from centre to home a positive one.”