The RSPCA have reported 137 animal abandonment reports were made in Oxfordshire in the latest figures. 

Across England and Wales, the rescue charity reports that the number of animals abandoned during the winter period has gone up by 51 per cent in just three years. 

It received 3,071 animal abandonment reports from November to January in 2021. During the same period in 2023, this rose to 4,630 pets who were reported to have been left to fend for themselves. 

READ MORE: Police probe as 7 cats die from 'poisoning' on Didcot estate 

A total of 20,999 abandonment reports were made to the charity's emergency line in 2023. 

The numbers have gone up year-on-year since the Covid-19 lockdown, and the charity said it believes a surge in pet ownership during the pandemic followed by a cost-of-living crisis has led to an increase in people dumping their pets.

Due to seasonal costs, the figures are expected to go up around Christmas time, something which the charity's Join the Christmas Rescue campaign attempts to counter. 

RSPCA Chief Inspector Ian Briggs said: “We are seeing a shocking rise in the number of calls reporting pet abandonment to our emergency line during winter with an eye-watering 51 per cent rise in three years. 

READ MORE: FIVE flood warnings issued by government for Oxfordshire 

"Our rescuers are regularly coming across dogs in poor health, collapsed and left in isolated spots to suffer a lingering death; sick kittens discarded in cardboard boxes who are lucky to be found alive; or pet rabbits dumped in the wild with little chance of survival against predators.

"Heartbreakingly, we are seeing many pets left in their own filth - with no food or water, no-one to care for them and no idea if anyone will come to help them.

“Thanks to the public supporting us we are able to rescue many animals, rehabilitate them and find them new homes - but to continue this life-saving work we need your help."

One Oxfordshire example is Rudy, named by the rescue team, a young male spaniel with a leg deformity who was left y the side of a road in a broken cage between Northmoor and Stanton Harcourt in May last year. 

Rudy was found abandoned in OxfordshireRudy was found abandoned in Oxfordshire (Image: RSPCA)

He was found alongside a note which read: "Please feed and look after me. My owner is struggling to look after me."

READ MORE: Customers 'angry' at Blenheim Palace storm opening times 

He was taken for urgent veterinary care and has since been rehabilitated and happily rehomed. 

The RSPCA has launched a cost of living hub to signpost help for struggling owners. 

It also issued guidance to people who find an abandoned animals on its website.

Help support trusted local news

Sign up for a digital subscription now: https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/subscribe/

As a digital subscriber you will get:            

  • Unlimited access to the Oxford Mail website        

  • Advert-light access             

  • Reader rewards             

  • Full access to our app