Pet adoptions have sky rocketed across the city in recent months, the Animal Welfare League NSW Dubbo Volunteer Branch has confirmed.
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While other states including Victoria saw pandemic-led pet adoptions short-lived with many getting re-dumped after the 2020 lockdown, Dubbo branch volunteer Bec Lawson said she didn't believe that would be the case for Dubbo.
"We don't hold concern over animals being dumped locally after lockdown," she said.
"All of our adoptees are thoroughly vetted to make sure they are the perfect fit for the animal in question.
"Most have been looking to adopt for some time but just hadn't found the perfect companion.
"We recently had someone travel from the ACT to adopt a kitten from us as she ticked all the right boxes.
"A lot of people are concerned about animal welfare and prefer to travel to adopt from a reputable and trusted rescue like Animal Welfare League NSW branches."
Ms Lawson said there definitely had been an increase in pet adoptions which did seem to happen routinely during lockdowns and for a couple of reasons.
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"During COVID-19 animal shelters shut their doors," she said.
"This meant rescues were receiving more enquiries as private breeders were pushing their prices of pets beyond most families.
"We are extremely happy that we have had a steady adoption rate and hope to see this continue into the futures.
"Most of our animals are adopted within a few days of being advertised."
Dubbo branch volunteer Janet Rose the an influx of animals in our community is due to most people not being able to afford the cost of desexing their pet.
"Also during COVID a lot of families have had to relocate for work and are unable to take their animals with them due to circumstances out of their control," she said.
With other regions lacking availabilities due to the country-wide high demand, outsiders have also been looking to Dubbo to find pets available for adoption.
Animal Welfare League NSW Dubbo has been experiencing a volume of cats and kittens in particular for some time now and has been a hub for other branches experiencing what they're referring to as a 'drought'.
The Dubbo branch was recently contacted by Animal Welfare League NSW Illawarra volunteer branch president Donna Ashelford in the hopes of potential availabilities.
The two branches organised for six crates of kittens to be transferred from Dubbo to the Illawarra region, where they would then be adopted out to local families there.
Ms Ashelford said with the Illawarra branch doubling its usual rate of adoptions and with five to ten prospective adopters for each kitten, they had to look to Dubbo for help.
To keep up to date with all the current adoptions visit the Animal Welfare League NSW Dubbo Branch Facebook page.
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Taylor Dodge
Your story matters, your voice deserves to be heard and I would love to help you share it. I have five years of experience as a Journalist with Australian Community Media covering an array of topics, with a key focus on breaking news and crime and a passion for people. E: taylor.dodge@austcommunitymedia.com.au.
Your story matters, your voice deserves to be heard and I would love to help you share it. I have five years of experience as a Journalist with Australian Community Media covering an array of topics, with a key focus on breaking news and crime and a passion for people. E: taylor.dodge@austcommunitymedia.com.au.
