Scottish SPCA’s Glasgow rescue and rehoming centre says don’t forget the animals

Scotland’s animal welfare charity has launched ‘Don’t Forget the Animals’ as it continues to deliver its life-saving services to animals nationwide.

Despite a fall in membership and donations due to the coronavirus outbreak, the Society’s dedicated animal care teams have helped thousands of animals over the past month.

In recent weeks, the Scottish SPCA has seen almost 1500 members stop their monthly donations. This, combined with the cancellation of fundraising events and challenges, means the Society could face losing up to 20 per cent of its income this year in a worst-case scenario.

The Society’s centre in Glasgow needs more than £86,000 every month to care for animals.

Since the nation entered lockdown on March 23, the Society has fielded over 11,000 calls to its animal helpline and responded to over 4400 reports of animals in urgent need – an average of over 140 per day.

The charity launched an emergency fostering service to free-up space as it continued to rescue animals without being able to rehome.

More than 130 animals have gone to foster homes, with over 300 animals seized on welfare grounds or picked up as strays coming in to rescue centres over the same period.

Over 700 animals are receiving rehabilitation at the National Wildlife Rescue Centre, which is getting busier all the time as the weather improves.

The Scottish SPCA has also had to suspend its education programme, instead offering a suite of free home-learning resources for parents, carers and teachers across Scotland.

The involvement of the Scottish SPCA can be the difference between life or death for animals like Layla, the Belgian malinois, who arrived at the Glasgow Animal Rescue and Rehoming Centre with behavioural issues.

Committed staff at the centre have been caring for Layla for almost a year.

Layla has been on a tailored rehabilitation plan after arriving with behavioural issues and being extremely nervous.

After a year of hard work, Layla is ready to find a loving hew home and has rediscovered how to have fun, be affectionate and love humans again.

Manager of the centre, Anna O’Donnell, said: “Our frontline teams, whether on our helpline, out on the road, or in a rescue centre, are still here fighting to rescue and care for every single animal we can.

“We know Scotland is a nation of animal lovers and now, more than ever, we ask that they don’t forget the animals.

“Our aim is to be here as long as animals and people need us, giving the likes of Layla a second chance in life.

“Every single person who signs up to support us with a monthly donation will make a difference and will save lives.”

The Scottish SPCA receives no government funding and is entirely reliant on donations from the public.

To find out more about the #DontForgetTheAnimals campaign or to become a member of the Scottish SPCA, visit the Scottish SPCA website