Nearly 400 animals were abandoned in just three months in Nottinghamshire last summer.
Hundreds of animals were abandoned in Nottinghamshire last year, and the RSPCA is now braced for a similar crisis this year.
The animal charity saw an 85% increase in the number of reports about dumped animals in the summer months in 2018, and now they are expecting to see a huge rise in calls about abandoned pets, often dumped in boxes, thrown in bins or left on the side of roads.
Throughout June, July and August last year, the RSPCA received 23,673 calls about dumped animals, around one call every six minutes nationwide, and in Nottinghamshire, 394 animals were abandoned during this period.
Just one example is these three kittens who were found dumped at the side of a road in Nottingham.
A member of the public came across the red Aldi shopping bag which was left dumped outside Lyn Gilzean Court in St Ann's Well Road on Monday May 1 at about 7.30pm.
They heard some noises coming from the bag and peered inside to find a shoebox containing the tiny, three-week-old kittens – a black and white male and two tortoiseshell females.
Inspector Dave McAdam said: “These kittens are tiny and so vulnerable, it is disgusting that someone callously just dumped them like pieces of rubbish.
“It was lucky they were found when they were or obviously they could have easily died.
“There is never an excuse to dump an animal when there is help available through charities such as the RSPCA.”
The kittens have been taken to the Radcliffe RSPCA branch where they will be cared for until they are old enough to be re-homed.
It is not clear why the figures rise so dramatically in the warmer months but it may be that abandoned animals are more visible when people are out and about, that people feel less guilty about leaving them alone when the weather is warmer or even that some people dump their pets when they go away on holiday and have nowhere for them to go.
Dermot Murphy, RSPCA’S chief inspectorate officer, said: “Sadly, we see a dramatic increase in the number of animals abandoned in the summer. From unwanted newborn kittens and puppies dumped in boxes and bins, exotic pets cast aside or horses abandoned in someone else’s field, dumped like rubbish.
"There is never an excuse to abandon an animal in this way and we would urge anyone who is struggling to cope with their pets to contact us or other charities for help. Our pets are sentient beings and great companions who rely on us for their health and happiness so dumping them like an old mobile phone or a piece of rubbish should never be the answer.
“The peak in animals being abandoned in the summer puts a massive strain on our inspectors, animal centres and branches who are left picking up the pieces when an animal is dumped.”
