Zeus is a three year old Staffie waiting to be rehomed. This month marks his one year anniversary of being rescued by the RSPCA.
His struggles to socialise well with young children and other animals makes him unsuitable for many families and decreases his chances of finding a forever home.
Hannah Rattray is the animal care manager at the Leeds, Wakefield and Humber RSPCA shelter. She is Zeus’ primary carer and has got to know him very well. “We deal with the most neglected and most abused… there’s nothing wrong with them, they just need a little bit of love.”
The RSPCA is urging people to show their support and help to ease the pressure by becoming a fosterer after facing its biggest rehoming crisis in history. These are people who temporarily care for the animals in their own home when the shelters get too full.
There are ongoing concerns regarding capacity in shelters after less and less people are rescuing animals each year. In 2022, the RSPCA found homes for 27,535 animals – but that’s 30% less than three years ago (in 2019) – when 39,178 animals were rehomed.
Natalie Rowe adopted her first rescue pet two years ago when she met Poochie. Although they have since developed a trusting relationship, Poochie is still wary of others and suffers with multiple behaviour problems. “There’s no way this mistrust and aggression is ever going to leave.”
