Pets abandoned leads to plea from farm
Following the suspected killing of a pet by foxes, a farm in the south-east of London has warned Londoners not to abandon their pets at the premises. The animal had been left in a bag by the gate.
Surrey Docks Farm in Rotherhithe said in a post on Instagram that “animals were dumped at the Farm in a travel bag.”
“Sadly within just a few minutes CCTV showed a fox sniffing the bag and then ten minutes later the foxes were back and had knocked the bag over and got inside,” the post continued.
The farm said that it does not “judge the individuals” but that it is not a rehoming centre. Pet owners, it said, should contact either a rescue centre or the RSPCA.
Staff arrived the next morning “to find the bag with a note saying ‘please help us’, but no animals, just sawdust, food and a carrot inside,” the post said. “We are NOT a rehoming centre but even if we were, please, please, don’t dump animals in unsuitable containers unattended in the night,” it went on to say.
“Every week we get contacted by parents saying something along the lines of ‘our child is no longer interested, would we like a rabbit?’. Taking on an animal is a big responsibility and we strongly advise against children having pets. We do understand that sometimes your situation changes and you suddenly need to rehome which can be very upsetting; in this case please contact a rescue centre first. For rabbits or guinea pigs please contact Greenwich Rabbit Rescue or the RSPCA.”
This comes following multiple cases of pets being abandoned in London. These include a guinea pig that was left at Canning Town Tube station and a hamster abandoned on a bus. Animal rehoming charities have reported that they were “overwhelmed” including Battersea Dogs & Cats Home.
