Valentine's Day

Love is in the air at the moment, but one poor dog in the care of Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, has been missing out on having a loving home of her own for way too long now.

Missy, who is a marvellous mongrel, has been in the charity’s care the longest of all their canine residents, and it’s high time she found her soulmate. So far, she has passed over 120 days in the London shelter – but let’s hope that Cupid can help her find a happily ever after. The average length of stay at Battersea is a month, so clearly, Missy is overdue to find a new owner.

With Valentine’s Day looming, let’s spare a thought for the most “unloved” dogs in the RSPCA’s care. In general, it takes a cat, dog or rabbit in the care of the RSPCA 39 days to find a new home – but for some unfortunate animals, it takes longer. And sometimes, it seems, their breed has a bearing on the length of their stay at a shelter.

Analysing the data, the charity has found that American Bulldogs are the breed most likely to spend the longest time waiting for their forever home. 66 days is the average length of time and American Bulldog spends at the RSPCA.

True love can be hard to find these days, but there is none truer than that lavished on us by our dogs. To celebrate this dogged devotion, Battersea Dogs & Cats Home in Old Windsor is holding a special Valentine’s Day event on Saturday 11th February. Dog lovers – and their four legged best friends – are welcome to visit the centre and revel in Puppy Love.

Buy your cards and gifts from gifts.rspca.org.uk

The RSPCA is hopeful that this Valentine’s Day will be full of love and kindness for animals as 65 per cent of people said they send greetings cards ‘from’ their pet to close family and friends.
A further 16 per cent of people said that everyone in their social circle receives greetings cards from their pet, a survey showed.

If you’re one of these animal lovers, you can send Valentine’s Day charity gifts that not only include greetings from yourself and your pet, but also raise funds for the RSPCA’s vital animal welfare work.

Here's a nice idea from Dogs Trust:

AND THEY CALL IT PUPPY LOVE…….”
Sponsor a Dogs Trust rescue dog this Valentine’s Day

Faithful, really cute and remembers to send you a Valentine’s card. No, it’s not your knight in shining armour, but a Dogs Trust sponsor dog looking for the perfect partner this February 14th.

Valentine's Day is fast approaching, and if you fancy having a night at a dog friendly hotel, you could win yourself one for free in this competition, run by ThePet.net. You can hear an interview with the site's creator, TV vet Marc Abraham in Episode 62 of DogCast Radio.

Win a romantic Valentine’s night for two, with puppy love included, thanks to ThePet.net