With less than eight weeks until Christmas, Dogs Trust Ballymena is on a mission to find the dogs in its care the one Christmas gift they all want – a home for life.
Dogs Trust Ballymena usually cares for around 50 dogs at any time, and the charity is on a mission to find homes for as many of them as possible ahead of the festive season.
This comes as Dogs Trust reveals it has received over 32,000 handover enquiries so far this year from owners no longer able to care for their dogs.
Thankfully, in 2024 so far, the charity has also found new homes for more than 6,000 dogs across the UK.
One of those dogs hoping for a new home ahead of the festive season is one-year-old Springer Cocker Spaniel cross Mo, a super friendly, energetic young lad with a comical character.
He is smart, loves learning new things and also has a love of food, which are the perfect combination for training. Mo has made great progress with his training while he has been in Dogs Trust care and shows lots of enthusiasm to learn.
Mo is looking for an adult-only home, with adopters who enjoy an active lifestyle and are willing to work with the Dogs Trust team to continue his progress in this area. Mo has previously lived with cats so may be able to share his home with felines and with a dog pending successful meets. He would love to build a bond with his new family before going home.
Conor O’Kane, Manager at Dogs Trust Ballymena says:
“Christmas is fast approaching, and we are hoping to find forever homes for as many dogs as possible ahead of the festive season. While the Dogs Trust team will make sure that the dogs in our care over Christmas are well looked after, with festive treats and gifts galore, we all know there’s nowhere quite like home. We are certain that there is a fantastic forever home for each and every one of our dogs, and we’d like to see as many as possible settled in their new happy places ahead of Christmas.
“Mo is an all-round lovely lad who is loyal, fun and has so much love to offer. Mo has formed fantastic friendships with his carers who love him to bits. He is also brilliant with other dogs so much so that he has been a fab kennel buddy to other dogs in our care who are struggling with kennels, provided a comforting and reassuring presence. Mo is intelligent and enjoys using his brain on various enrichment activities and likes being kept busy. Now is the time for this happy and friendly boy to meet his special someone to share the rest of his life with.”
For almost fifty years, Dogs Trust has been linked to Christmas thanks to the famous phrase “A Dog is for Life, Not Just for Christmas”, penned by the charity’s team in 1978 in response to the large number of puppies bought as Christmas gifts and then abandoned in January.
Since then, it has gone on to find homes for thousands of dogs each year. While the charity no longer sees a large number of pet-shop bought puppies handed over in January, the last three years have been some of the busiest on record for Dogs Trust. In 2022 it received over 50,000 handover requests, with a further 45,000 last year, and over 32,000 so far this year.
Conor goes on to say:
“Welcoming a dog into your home is a wonderful experience, but it requires commitment, both in terms of time and money. We work closely with prospective adopters to ensure they’re fully prepared to welcome one of our dogs into their home, and our team carefully matches each dog with a family and home that suits them best. And our care doesn’t stop at rehoming – we offer ongoing support and guidance to owners throughout their dog's life. At Dogs Trust, our dogs are part of the family for life, not just for Christmas."
For more information about Mo or the other dogs in the care of Dogs Trust Ballymena tap here.