Adopt a pet? SPA launches SOS summer campaign

Just two months ahead of the long summer school holidays, the Société Protectrice des Animaux (SPA) has said that domestic animal shelters are reaching peak capacity.

It is now seeking to boost adoption levels and raise awareness as summer approaches.

The timing is not accidental; as the SPA says: “Summer is a critical period because one third of abandonments take place between July and August.”

In addition, SPA figures show that rescue numbers - the term given for when new owners give abandoned pets a proper home - have dropped by 10% in the first four months of this year.

As a result, the group is now organising a series of “open door” events on June 2 and 3, across 63 shelters and SPA Houses (Maisons SPA).

The campaign is seeking to show that pet rescuing can boost happiness and wellbeing levels among owners.

It asks: “Did you know that adopting [a pet] can make you happy?”

Natacha Harry, president of the SPA, said: “Living with an animal is very stimulating, and their unconditional love can help ease and even cure certain human conditions. Animals are therefore a conduit of wellbeing [and] certain shelters now organise animal therapy sessions for fragile individuals.”