Dogs abandoned: Neglect at crisis record high, says Hope shelter

Ms Rosser said the centre, which opened in 2005, is constantly at capacity, taking in more than 900 dogs last year.

“We were hoping that we would start to see numbers begin to reduce, but demand for rescue spaces is worse than ever,” she said, describing January as “relentless”.

She said there had been two cases of abandonments on mountains in the last week – with two German shepherds left in Bedwas and two “heavily matted” cockapoos neglected in Caerphilly.

“It is a real concern for us, the level of neglect and abandonments that we’re seeing,” she said.

She said the German shepherds would have died if they had not been caught and brought to the centre.

“It was freezing and these dogs haven’t got any body fat to protect them,” she said.

The centre has been running at capacity since last summer with more than 160 dogs, half of which are in the kennels and the rest with foster families.

“I still think we’re seeing the fallout from the huge boom in dog ownership during Covid,” Ms Rosser said. “We’ve got more dogs than ever before, we’re also seeing more people struggling with finances.”

“They’re not providing veterinary care, they’re losing their homes. It’s just a sad sign of the times that sometimes people are choosing to abandon rather than waiting for a rescue space.

“It is the perfect storm with more dogs and more owners struggling in the cost of living crisis means there are so many dogs that need the support of rescue centres,” she added.