The Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ISPCA) has called on the public to continue supporting its National Emergency Appeal.
The organisation said the current rise in cases of abandonment and cruelty to animals as “alarming” and said it has “overwhelmed existing resources”.
Chief executive officer (CEO) of ISPCA, Dr. Cyril Sulllivan said: “Effectively, there’s been a doubling of demand on our services.”
To meet the demand, the ISPCA has seen estimated annual costs rise to over €500,000 solely to house dogs in private kennels or temporary facilities.
Since launching its emergency campaign in June this year, 25% of this target has been met.
A total of 115 dogs have been rehomed since the launch of the emergency campaign.
Volunteer for the ISPCA, Maria Fallon adopted one of these dogs, a Cavachon called Sophie.
Fallon said that Sophie was “terrified” when they first met. After a week of being in the family home, Fallon said she was “doing amazing”, hopping up on the couch and playing with her toys.
“Rescuing is rewarding. You’re giving them the chance that somebody else took away from them,” Fallon said.
In a separate appeal, the ISPCA has had a sudden influx of around twenty outdoor farm cats, which it is trying to find homes for.
It stated the new owner will get vet assessed, neutered cats, which would work as organic pest control.
ISPCA CEO Dr. Sulllivan said that officers noticed there was a “significant” increase in abuse and neglect towards the end of 2022, continuing into 2023 for dogs in particular.
As a result, Dr. Sulllivan said that all ISPCA kennels were full. It had no choice but to start renting kennels.
ISPCA board member, Nora Duggan said that this renting has put “financial pressure” on the organisation.
She said the organisation has approximately “threefold” what it had this time last year.
She described numbers of animals rescued this year as “unprecedented” and said that the ISPCA recently rescued 117 dogs from a puppy farm.
The ISPCA stated that the best way for people to help is through donating or adopting via its website or a phonecall.
It added that the benefits of the campaign is already felt by “at-risk animals”.
Additional reporting by Kate McMahon