Stray dogs taken to the local council pound have just seven days to be reunited with their families before they become the legal property of the local authority, and can be either rehomed or put to sleep.

Due partly to the recession, local authority pounds throughout the UK are full to bursting, leaving no space for the dog on its eighth day when the newest stray comes in.

More dogs than ever are being euthanised, many simply because there is nowhere for them to go and their owners have not come forward or been found (a good reason why you should microchip your pets and keep those details up to date).

This is why rescues like Pawprints have been founded. We want to save as many of these dogs as possible and find them loving, forever homes.

Since Pawprints started, we have saved hundreds of dogs that would otherwise have been put to sleep.

All of our dogs rescued from the pound undergo an assessment before being rehomed. All Pawprints dogs are fully vaccinated, wormed, flea treated and neutered (providing age allows).

PLEASE NOTE – we DO NOT take owner relinquishments. We have received so many calls from people wanting to “get rid” of their dogs for various reasons recently. Our purpose is to save the lives of dogs at immediate risk of being put to sleep that are on “death row” and strays that have not been claimed, namely those in the council pounds.