SPCA kicks off half-price pet adoption campaign

FOREVER HOME WANTED: SPCA canine attendant Christie Patumaka with Harry Potter who was found at a farm after the cyclone. With his loving and affectionate nature, Harry Potter is capturing the hearts of the staff at the Gisborne SPCA. Named because of the scar caused by a bullet wound to his eye, Harry is looking for his forever home with a loving family. Picture by Rebecca Grunwell

The local SPCA is offering half-price animal adoption to encourage Gisborne people to welcome a furry friend into their homes.

The special price is available from today, April 29, until May 7 to help find the stray animals warm and dry forever homes ahead of the winter months.

Gisborne SPCA centre manager Lindy Magee believes a house is not a home without a pet.

“Come on Gisborne, get behind your local SPCA — we’ve got a selection of fantastic pets who all deserve a forever home. No animal should have to live in a shelter,” Lindy says.

A total of 93 animals are up for adoption at the moment and Lindy and her team are hoping that by making it half-price, more people will seriously consider adopting an animal.

There are cats and kittens, dogs and puppies, roosters and even a couple of thoroughbred horses looking for homes.

A recent canine arrival Harry Potter is already stealing the hearts of the staff at the SPCA centre at Matawhero. Harry, or Potts as he has become known, was found on a farm in the Waimata Valley after the cyclone with a serious bullet wound to his eye.

“He was taken straight to the vets and nursed back to health,” Lindy said.

“One of the vets took him to her home on a farm where he loved lazing in the sunshine on the deck over the weekend before he was brought to us. He got on well with her other animals.

“He’s a lovely boy — very affectionate. He is also partly deaf which may have been caused by the gun shot but he seems to be gradually getting some hearing back.”

The two thoroughbred horses are from good bloodlines and need to be homed together. They need an experienced rider and are not suitable for children to ride.

When the cyclone hit in February, the Gisborne SPCA was not flooded but it was without power for two weeks and there was no water. They managed to get water tanks delivered but not without a major effort.

The centre has to be hosed out and disinfected daily to prevent cross-contamination. Things like cat flu and Giardia are easily spread so keeping up these hygiene practices is crucial.

There was a huge increase in the numbers of stray animals after Covid-19 lockdowns when the de-sexing programme was put on hold. They were finally catching up, Lindy said.

“Desexing was not deemed an essential service for vets during the lockdowns and the result is a population explosion,” she says.

“It’s a global problem.”

Also contributing to the high number of animals in the Gisborne centre is the closure of the state highway to Napier. The Gisborne SPCA is now taking stray animals from Wairoa which would previously have gone to the Napier and Hastings branches.

A big drive to recruit new volunteers is coming up with an open day scheduled for May 21. This is the opportunity for people interested in volunteering to learn about what is required and go through a health and safety induction.

They need about 30 new volunteers to do a variety of tasks on a roster system. As well as cleaning and laundry duties there’s also the fun stuff like walking the dogs and playing with the animals.