About 20 years ago, a cat’s life in the shelter had a 62 per cent chance of being put down, while for dogs, it was more than one in three.
But, great changes have started to develop now as The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) claimed that 61 per cent of cats were adopted from shelters in 2017 to 2018, which was a 30 per cent increased from 1999, while 76 per cent of 40,286 dogs in the shelters were rehomed or reclaimed by lost owners with only 14 per cent of them euthanized – down 39 per cent in 1999.
RSPCA said this improvement was largely due to a growing acceptance to adopt or rescue animal companions that buy from breeders.
However, though there is a rise on pet adoption, there is still a continuous cat problem.
As the number of dogs admitted to shelters dropped from 67,204 to 40,286 last year, the number of cats abandoned at shelters remains at a high percentage, about 50,000 a year.
“About 7 per cent of cats coming in get reclaimed, whereas over 60 per cent of dogs get reclaimed, and that’s because they’re not identified,” said Liz Walker, RSPCA Victoria chief executive. “That’s something we’re working really hard with local governments, state governments and the community to try and understand what’s what’s driving that.”
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