The Walloon Minister for Animal Welfare, Carlo Di Antonio, has mounted an awareness-raising campaign around the adoption of domestic animals housed in shelters. Posters will adorn stations, bus shelters and magazine pages through to September 26th.
The number of abandoned dogs and cats is on the increase in Wallonia. In 2015, 26,700 animals, mainly dogs and cats took lodgings in shelters. This compared to 24,300 in 2014.
Six out of ten dogs and three-quarters of cats were found on the streets, the rest having been brought by their owners to various shelters.
A proportion of these animals found new owners - 81% of dogs and but 45% of cats. The others had to be put down or, in a small proportion of cases, died naturally.
The Minister indicated both in a communiqué and in the SudPresse publications yesterday (Tuesday) that adopting a shelter dog or cat has several advantages, and will contribute to reversing this trend.
Indeed, the animal has a vet examination, is treated for both worms and fleas, spayed or castrated, microchipped, recorded on a database, vaccinated and learns animal “social skills”.
The campaign poster shows four cats and dogs who are highly grateful for their new life.
Walloons who have adopted an animal from a shelter are also invited to share a photograph of them with their new companion on social networks, by using the hashtag #monrefugecheztoi.
The Brussels Times
