dog

The number of designer crossbreeds coming into RSPCA centres is on the rise.

The RSPCA has had an influx of fashionable dog breeds and ‘designer’ crossbreeds arriving at its national centres.

The worrying trend reflects an increasing demand for specific breeds which the charity is seeing within the puppy market and which is the focus of its latest campaign.

Sadly, these popular breeds and crossbreeds can later be abandoned or are not cared for properly.

Starved dog given a Dickens name because he loved food glorious food

A starving dog dubbed Oliver Twist because he yowled for more food is looking for a new home.

The emaciated boxer cross was rescued by the RSPCA after he was tied to tree in a graveyard in Leyton, East London.

He was taken to the charity’s Harmsworth Animal Hospital, where staff discovered he weighed 17.8kg about half the ideal weight of a dog his size.

Vicky Coleman, dispensary supervisor at Harmsworth, said: “I have never seen a dog so skinny, it was absolutely horrendous.”

From Dartford to Doncaster, canines from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home in Brands Hatch have proved there is no distance too far for a Battersea dog, as they travelled across the country to their loving new homes in 2015.

The Dartford areas came out on top as the most likely place in Kent to have a Battersea dog, with the Rochester and Medway postcodes inching close as runners-up. Doncaster and Peterborough also made an appearance, but it was the south-east London and north-west Kent postcodes bordering the countryside rescue centre that proved to be the most popular.

From Battersea to Bugnaux, canines from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home have proved there is no distance too far, as they travelled across the entire UK and even abroad to their loving homes in 2015.

Ink the Staffordshire Bull Terrier was rehomed just metres from the south London rescue centre in Battersea, but some went further than others, with Codi the Bull Mastiff making a remarkable 570 mile journey to his new home in Switzerland last year.

A blind dog who was tied to a pallet of bricks and left to die is searching for a very special new home.

Delphine the springer spaniel captured the hearts of the nation after being dumped in a remote lane in Maidstone, Kent in May.

The terrified dog had ear infections and cataracts in both eyes which left her almost blind. Thanks to donations from the public Delphine had specialist veterinary treatment and although her sight could not be restored she is recovering well from her ordeal and now needs a new home.

Four year old tiny Cricket the nervous Chihuahua has finally overcome his fears and found a loving home of his own just in time for a summer of runs with the Ashes cricket series.

Cricket was so nervous of new people and new situations when he came into Battersea that staff at the Brands Hatch centre were worried he wouldn’t come out of his shell and find his perfect match.

You know, it's funny but people's weight never bothers me - and indeed my own weight could do with being less than it is. But that's my business, and my decision, and I respect that fact that others make their own decisions about their own diet and weight.

Dogs Trust contact centre answers 100,000 calls in its first six months, including enquiries about parrots, donkeys, lizards and cats!

Dogs Trust’s national contact centre has taken 100,000 calls in its first six months with more than 20% of calls being from dog-lovers looking to give homeless hounds their ‘furry-tail’ ending.

The contact centre, based at Dogs Trust Manchester, opened on 29 September last year and now handles calls for the charity’s 20 UK-based rehoming centres.

I've just discovered a wonderful idea that artist Elizabeth Ellis has
come up with. She's called it The Year of 52 Rescues, and throughout
2015 she'll be painting a picture of one adoptable animal who is
currently in a shelter. The hope is that this will help the animal find
a home, and will also shine a light on the plight of animals waiting
for their forever home.

I've just got off the phone from Radio Scotland, discussing the latest research about dogs. This study, from the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna's Messerli Research Institute showed that dogs can read our facial expressions.