A surge in unwanted and stray dogs in Guyra and Tingha is causing concern for local animal lovers. Chief among those is local vet Ainslie Lund who has taken on the task of finding homes for many of the lovely, stray and unwanted dogs and puppies. However for every dog she manages to rehome there is another to take its place.
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Unwanted pets are nothing new, but what is new is the determination by Ainslie and the staff at Guyra District Veterinary Services to find a home for the suitable dogs that have ended up at the pound through no fault of their own.
The dogs come to the clinic in a number of ways. Some are picked up by council officers and taken to the local pound. Others are pets that are surrendered because they are no longer wanted or can no longer be cared for. If they are not re-claimed and cannot be rehomed the only option is euthanasia.
Ainslie and the team have started a determined effort to find homes for as many of the dogs as possible. They have been successful to date, however they have now exhausted their networks and are looking to the wider community to come on board.
“We have an influx of stray animals entering the pound in Guyra at the moment and it is so sad to have to put to sleep perfectly healthy happy animals all the time,” Ainslie said. ”Ït’s really important that people do the responsible thing and get their pets desexed to try and get on top of this pet over-population problem.”
“It seems dogs are seen as ‘disposable’ by many people. Why pay money to get your dog out of the pound when you can just get another one for free from your mate down the road? And so the cycle continues.”
It is an ongoing issue and while they are looking to organise a desexing/education program to try and alleviate the problem at its source, there is an urgent need now for homes.
They are looking for ‘forever’ homes and also foster carers who can look after dogs until a ‘forever’ home is found. All the dogs looking for permanent homes are desexed, vaccinated, microchipped, wormed and are temperament tested to ensure their suitability as family pets. A fee of $220 applies to cover costs. If you can help either by being a foster carer or providing a home please call Guyra district vet clinic on 6779 1173.
They have also started a facebook page ‘Rehoming Unwanted and Stray Animals in the Guyra Region’ - like them to keep up to date with current animals needing homes.