Dubbo City Council manager environmental control Debbie Archer said Saturday was particularly busy, with 11 dogs dropped off in one morning.

"Some of these animals are finding their way home, particularly if they are microchipped or registered," she said.

"But occasionally even then people choose not to pick them up.

"It's hard to know why. People may not consider looking at the shelter when pets are available for free or for sale very cheaply on social media.

"Even if they do buy their new pet via Facebook thinking they will save money, it should by law still be registered so they will still be up for that cost."

Desexing was still the best way to stem the number of unwanted cats and dogs ending up at the shelter, Ms Archer said.

"Unless you're a registered breeder, there's really no reason not to desex your animal," she said.

"The other important thing is to make sure they're microchipped.

"In fact, if your pet is microchipped we can contact you as soon as it comes through the door.

"Also, if you're looking for a Christmas present for your cat or dog, a $10 tag with your phone number on it is the best gift you could give them."

Meanwhile, the dogs that turned up at the Dubbo Animal Shelter might be just the tip of the iceberg when it came to strays and escaped animals, according to at least one Dubbo resident who commented on the shelter's Facebook page when it posted about the 11-dog influx.

She said she herself had picked up six strays in three days.

"The first two were chipped and owners picked them up from vet," she wrote.

"The next two had numbers on the collar so called the owners.

"But the last two broke my heart - one not microchipped (and very scared) and one was microchipped but looked neglected and doesn't deserve to have the owners that he has.

"Drives me nuts when people don't put a collar on their pet with contact details! And for goodness sake people, microchip them."

But on the plus side, Ms Archer said, thanks to microchipping there had been some heartwarming reunions in recent times, including a couple of dogs that were reported stolen several months earlier and were claimed by their rightful owner after they showed up at the Dubbo Animal Shelter.

In another incident, an owner whose dog had gone missing two years earlier returned to Dubbo from his new residence in Port Macquarie to collect his pet.

"We also had one stolen from Coonabarabran that showed up at the Dubbo Animal Shelter and the owner came from there to collect it," Ms Archer said.