ECOnscious: RESCUE ME

Looking for a new best friend, dog, cat, bunny or other’ Consider rescuing one from the pound. There have been many happy stories about families finding their perfect pet at a shelter and saving its life in the process.

Animal shelters such as the RSPCA take in unwanted animals and try to find homes for as many as possible, but with so many animals in need they can not support all animals indefinitely. Consequently they are forced to euthanise thousands of perfectly healthy animals.

Australia has one of the highest rates of pet ownership in the world. Four out of five Australians have owned a pet at some time and almost two-thirds of Australian households currently own pets. Millions of dollars are spent each year on pet supplies and food. Despite these figures, tens of thousands of healthy cats and dogs are given up to shelters every year.

Every time someone buys a purebred dog or cat from a breeder or pet store instead of adopting from an animal shelter or a breed rescue group, a shelter animal loses his or her chance at finding a home.

There are many shelters online where potential pets can be viewed before making the commitment to meet them in real life.

With the festive season around the corner, resist the temptation to present a family member or mate with a pet that they may not be able to care for. A dog or cat, if you’re lucky can live for up to 12 years, that’s 85 dog years, so it is a long term commitment!

For information go to www.rspca.org.au or www.doggierescue.com/