Two last litters, one of puppies, the other of kittens, all barely a few days old, have joined the entire line of small residents at the Marina shelters, Un refuge pour Céret and Un poil de joie in Soler. “With increasing abandonments, we are reaching saturation”, is alerted by those responsible, forced to stop “temporary” support in the Pyrénées-Orientales.
On the Vallespir side, in Céret more precisely, Marina faces a crucial problem: “Curly has reached saturation point. For weeks, even months, we’ve been dealing with waves of abandonments and animals being rehomed from the pound. Believe me, it hurts not really having a choice anymore.“I did not take this decision lightly and I truly hope this situation will not continue.”
“More and more young breed dogs abandoned”
Its animal shelter, which does not benefit from subsidies and which it runs with its own funds, welcomes between 70 and 80 dogs, cats, horses, rabbits, ferrets and small rodents mixed in at the beginning of October. This forty-year-old, who looks like Béatrice Dalle, watches over her little ones like a second mother. She is supported daily by André, her husband and a team of volunteers whom she knows.to be able to count. Marina also encourages people who want to welcome a pet into their home “to come and adopt in a shelter This will give two positive points: An adoption and the space freed up for a new resident”.
She details“most people get a cute puppy from a breeder, often very expensively, because it is fashionable. But as it grows, the animal asserts itself, develops new traits, or is not socialized, and this can cause harm. These are young purebred dogs, completely abandoned, that I recover and that I try to raise and readjust to everyday life, so that they can be adopted by good owners. And to make a final appeal: “more than ever we need litter and food donations (crumbs, boxes, hay, pellets, etc.)”.
“Saturated with kittens from a few days old to old tomcats”
In an extraordinary situation, an extraordinary decision. This is also what is happening on the Soler side, where the Un Poil de Bonheur cat sanctuary is today, “saturated with kittens a few days old like old tomcats at the end of their lives“, note with regret Olivia, the president of the shelter, who arrived last June, and Melody, the manager. So they had to announce this not easy news on social networks: “We are temporarily stopping the care of new abandoned cats…“.
Olivia recognizes: “We’ve been on the brink of implosion for a while. Abandonments are piling up and places have become expensive. It breaks our hearts because we receive several calls a day for felines of all ages, in good health, but also sick or aging, quickly to be welcomed.
Concluding with this request: “NWe will not turn away new hands to replace our formidable team of volunteers. No foster families for our cats. Nor do donations of food or other items.”