Dogsey

Battersea Dogs Home is calling for greater regulation of internet sites such as Gumtree, and are mounting an online campaign to highlight the risks involved in using them to buy dogs, cats and other pets. The charity feels that these websites, particularly those that are not monitored, make it is too easy to buy and sell animals; with speed and low costs resulting in people buying pets without adequate thought and research - an issue which is being exploited by unscrupulous breeders and sellers looking to make easy money.

The Home believes that people are given very little background information about their animals and when they find they cannot cope with unsocialised puppies and dogs, or have not anticipated the level of commitment required to care for them, they are changing their minds about owning them and bringing them into the charity. Battersea Dogs Home hopes to get people to reconsider buying online in the first place before it gets to this stage, and suggests that people logon to its website and consider rehoming from the charity instead.

Animals rehomed from Battersea Dogs Home are neutered and vaccinated, and the Home provides continued behaviour advice and support.

Battersea Dogs Home centres can be contacted on the following numbers:

Battersea, London: Tel: 020 7622 3626
Battersea, Old Windsor: Tel: 01784 432929
Battersea, Brands Hatch: Tel: 01474 874994