“Hi,
do you know how many animal shelters are closing because of the recession/credit crunch?

And also where in the UK has been hit the hardest?

Would you have any names of businesses that have closed or near closure?”

“having worked at teckels for over six years i have to say what a fantastic job the staff and volunteers do, particulally joan and em. They all work very hard and are under alot of pressure! so please give them a break..it is one of the hardest jobs imaginable if you are an animal lover such as myself. Seeing all those homeless animals in need of a place to call their own is heartbreaking and you just want to take them all home and some of the ridiculous 'excuses' people have for wanting to rehome their dogs just angers me!
If people would just stop breeding just to make a few bob then we wouldn't have so many unwanted and abandoned dogs! Spaying and castration should be mandatory!

As for not being able to just 'drop in' and look around Teckels...this is put in place for a number of reasons.
Having strangers walking around 'gawping' and children most probably teasing and poking fingers through the kennels bars can be very distressing for the dogs. The way an animal behaves in a kennel is in no way a reflection on howw they will behave in a home environment.
For instance my ex teckels collie is a complete nutter at the kennels but is very calm at home, so this is not the bes way to view a potential new dog as you would be put off by the way some of the dogs can behave in the kennel, but once thay are out of the kennel and calmed down then that is the best time to see the dog, so that is why teckels operate this way and people that get annoyed by this procedure clearly aren't all that bothered about rehoming a dog!
The reason other 'large' rescue centres allow prospective owners to walk around to see the dogs is because that is what they are'rescue centres' they have hundreds of kennels purely for homeless dogs where as Teckels have around ten! You couldn't allow members of the public to wander around teckels as they have a number of boarding doggies there on their holidays.

Please please give these guys a break, they all work so hard and at the end of the day the animals wellbeing is what matters and that is what they always put first! Anyone who is a genuine animal lover please donate some time and volunteer down at the centre and you will see just how devoted everyone is and how lovely the animals really are!! ex-staff member, glos, g”

“some of these comments are really just sad. how can you justify leaving a dog alone at home all day while you are at work? no wonder they wouldnt rehome a dog with you. how would you feel about being left in a room with nothing to do for 8 hours a day? at least at the kennel they are walked, cuddled and loved 24/7.”

“i agree im afraid about some of the staff"s attitude, i tried to offer a fantastic home to a poor homeless dog years ago, and i received just negative feedback. every dog i expressed an interest in they just said"hes reserved" i left there feeling really disheartened and as though i was a inexperienced dog owner. i drove straight to cheltenham animal shelter and they were absolutely wonderful. they welcomed me with open arms and i was allowed to take home a lovely collie x who had been badly beaten and starved. i had him till he was 15 and he had a wonderful life with me... when i later enquired about a pyreanean mountain dog that had been brought in i was told "hes gone he needed an experienced home" well i was an experienced owner, onl;y they didnt give me any encouragement to tell them. im sorry but they do treat you as if you know nothing about dogs and they know everything.. well ive had dogs for 30years now so i think i do know a bit by now......”

“well i was the second comment just like to say my husband took 2 sacks of food to teckles and it was very well recived they were very grateful for the food they have , i have dogs and i can assure you id go without before any of my dogs would be fed or looked after they are treated the same as my children loved the same etc if they need the vets they are taken they are given exercise disalpin and afection in true dog whisperer fashin”

“Stroud of Stroud missed the point of giving.
It's the doggies who would like to say "Thanks for the food donation".
Try volunteering there for a day.”

“I agree that some flexability needs to be exercised when rehoming dogs as to hours worked by the adoptee ,but also staff are only trying to find the very best homes for dogs and cats in their care who have already had a sometimes traumatic life before ending up in the shelters.Owners who hand in their animals using the excuse of food costs,make me wonder if they would hand over their children using the same reason! Or of course the older animals that get handed over,would they again get their elderley relatives put up for adoption! Makes you think does'nt it?”

“I agree with the other comments, surely if the dogs are well loved, fed and watered and get exercise at sometime of the day, this would be better for the dog than the prospect of staying in a kennel not wanted and eventually put down.”

“I am a volunteer for a nation breed rescue, and while, yes I agree that in an ideal world people should go home at lunchtime to exercise their dogs we realise that this is not always possible. I would never turn down a home purely becuase they work full time.”

“I can't begin to say how sorry I feel for these poor animals - no matter how tight things got money wise I would never see my dogs go without. I got them it's my duty of care to them to look after them no matter what. I'm sure teakles are doing as good a job as possible - however there's one thing that has made me donate to the local RSPCA this year instead of teackles.... It's the sheer rudeness that the staff show you when you donate anything to them. Your extremly lucky if you even get a thank you! I know it's 'donating' so your not to expect anything in return but a smile and thank you really doesn't cost anything! Perhaps if they changed their attitude more animals would be re-homed and more people would donate to them.”