“Pet owners have to go back to the office. The dogs and cats that have been purchased are lonely at home,” Femke Pasquino-de Harde tells RTL Nieuws. She reads the reasons why people put their dog or cat back on her site. The website matches pets and (new) owners.
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Coronapuppy’s
During the pandemic, people flocked to find cats, dogs and rabbits. One cat or dog posted to the site received between forty and fifty responses from people willing to adopt the animal.
In the meantime, supply and demand have reversed. Before corona there were an average of 1400 animals on the website, now there are 2200. “Half of these animals are less than two years old and therefore purchased during corona time,” says Pasquino-de Harde.
Behavioral problems dogs
A common reason why owners give up their four-legged friend is because of the dog’s behavioral problems. That can be explained, says Pasquino-de Harde. “Pups have to be socialized in the first half of the year. You often do this at a dog school, but they were closed in corona time. online platform set up where pet owners can follow courses with animal experts to get their pet off to a good start.”
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lots of rabbits
Several animal welfare organizations do not see a return of the corona puppies and cats. The Dierenbescherming, which has 19 shelters in the Netherlands, does not recognize the trend. “We were afraid of it, but for now it is not busier than usual,” a spokesperson said. However, many rodents were returned last summer and the rabbit centers were busy.
Yet there is definitely something wrong with the purchased corona companion animals, says Josephine Woltman Elpers, professor of animal welfare at Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences “Many people who have purchased an animal in corona do not have the correct information about the care or behavior of the animal. animal.”
Rabbit doesn’t want to be cuddled
For example, owners have underestimated the impact of training a puppy. “If you don’t do this properly, the animal can develop behavioral problems later on. But things often go wrong with rabbits too. They seem to have a high cuddly content, but a rabbit does not like to be picked up and cuddled. then not up to the owner’s expectation and is divested again after a while.”
Woltman Elpers, together with (animal welfare) organizations, shelters and others involved in the buying and selling of companion animals, is developing a monitor in which all organizations collect their data (anonymously) to provide national insight into the entire companion animal chain. . “That’s important, because when we have more data, we can engage with all parties on the welfare of the animals, so that the owners and the animals are happy.”
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