Yes, Lucy was lucky, but not all dogs are.

Why you should never give away a pet or condone ‘free to a good home’ behaviour

Lucy had to be carried into the vet when we rescued her in July as she could no longer muster up the strength to walk on her own or even wag her tail. The vet diagnosed her with extreme malnourishment, starvation and tick bite fever. What was shocking, was to learn that she has been sterilized, which means that she used to have a home once, one who cared enough to sterilize her. Despite this, this gentle giant, left to fend for herself, resorted to eating stones, plastic, rubber and foil just to survive. What went wrong?

Langebaan Animal Care continued to investigate, in search of her owners and for any idea of where she could have come from. Thanks to her microchip, LAC was able to piece together this picture of a dog’s struggle and how it came to be. She had been a case of ‘free to a good home’ where her original owners gave her away 2 years ago. There were no protocols in place to help prevent her from being homed to an unsuitable home.

Unfortunately, the reality is that when you give away a pet without the involvement of an organisation you are putting them at risk- even if you’re giving your pet away to someone you know.

Shelters are filled with dogs who were given away. Some new owners only took responsibility until it no longer suited them. Some were handed from home to home, ending up being neglected, being dumped and unfortunately, like Lucy, starved in a field somewhere.

Why rehome your pet through a trusted animal welfare organisation?

1. They’re focused on protecting your pet’s health and safety:
   Shelters usually provide necessary initial vaccinations, spaying or neutering, microchipping and health check-ups before rehoming pets. This not only safeguards the pet’s well-being but also ensures they won’t contribute to overpopulation
2. They ensure your pet is going to a home where they will thrive:
   Rehoming via an organisation ensures that potential adopters are assessed based on family’s lifestyle, their experience with pets, and whether or not the environment they can provide is what is best for the pet. Pets are matched with owners, which means the pet is compatible with the owner and home.
3. They tend to provide support and resources for new owners:
   By offering guidance to new pet owners and checking in periodically to ensure the pet adjusts well to their new home, the chances of the pet being returned due to behavioral, or health issues is reduced significantly.
4. They normally have a return policy:   This prevents the pet being handed out willy nilly and landing up in a situation like Lucy.

Bringing a pet into your life is a big commitment, and sometimes circumstances change, making it difficult to continue caring for them- but you still have a responsibility towards your pet to ensure they are cared for even in a new home.

If you’re thinking of rehoming your pet, reach out to your local animal welfare organisation and help us reduce animal neglect and abuse by keeping them from landing up in the wrong hands.