A dog who was found as a stray is nearing the heartbreaking milestone of 300 days in RSPCA care – after his first forever home fell through along with two failed foster homes.
Sweet Charlie, a one year old lurcher, has really had a lot of emotional turmoil during his short life.
He was taken into RSPCA care after he was found alone as a stray – staff were over the moon when he was adopted – but sadly due to no one’s fault this didn’t work out and he ended up coming back to the RSPCA Danaher Animal Home.
Since then he has been fostered twice but again due to no one’s fault this didn’t work out and now he’s back at Danaher and it means he is getting closer to the heartbreaking milestone of 300 days without his own family.
Sadly Charlie, who is being boarded at Danaher on behalf of the RSPCA Cambridge and District Branch, is just one of thousands of dogs across the RSPCA who are in desperate need of a new home, between 2021 and 2022, the RSPCA has seen a six percent increase in the number of dogs taken into care.
As the crisis continues, RSPCA rescue centres are “full to bursting” with unwanted pets.
To try and revive adoption rates, the RSPCA’s month-long Adoptober rehoming campaign launched this month) celebrating the wonder of rescue pets, and highlighting the many animals the charity has waiting to find their perfect match.
Craig Horsler, animal welfare supervisor at the Wethersfield centre, said: “The sad thing is Charlie is really content and loves being at Danaher and he thinks it’s his home – which is really heartbreaking because we know that if he did have a home to call his own he would be the happiest little chap ever. We keep telling him, he will love a home with a family even more!
“Charlie is a firm favourite with everyone at the centre and he’s just a real charmer. He has what we call an ‘on the go’ personality so needs sufficient exercise including walks and opportunities to run and play.
“His energy levels are typical of a dog his age and breed. When he isn’t busy burning off energy, he loves to chill out with you or take a soft toy and lay down with.”
Charlie loves traveling in a car and exploring new places with his handlers, we often visit the local park where we sit down and Charlie loves to relax and lay by our side.
Charlie will need basic training around a home as he hasn’t had an opportunity to consistently learn what a home is all about. But he is a clever boy and will pick things up quickly.
If you have room in your heart, love going on adventures but also have a Charlie sized soft spot , then please consider giving him the home, life and love he longs for.
The Essex-based animal home said August was a record-breaking month for all the wrong reasons, as they took in 43 dogs, 41 cats, 16 rabbits, and 40 small furries.
The high number is believed to be a result of the current animal welfare and cost of living crisis – as more and more people give up their pets or abandon them and sadly more animals are removed as result of cruelty or neglect.
It is an increased strain on the centre, which costs around £70,000 a month to run.
This follows a collapse in rehoming rates nationally; which have fallen by 30% from three years ago – when 39,178 animals were rehomed. In 2022, only 27,535 animals were rehomed by the RSPCA.
