Animal rights activists in Norway were upset again this week and chiding their fellow Norwegians for a seasonal problem that comes up every summer: Pet-dumping.
Cats, dogs, and even the occasional rabbit have been found wandering aimlessly in the woods or residential neighborhoods, dumped by their owners who take off for extended summer holidays without arranging for anyone to take care of their pets.
Sometimes the forlorn animals are found in the vicinity of veterinarians or animal shelters, likely cast off by those who at least have enough conscience to hope that their pets will be cared for.
“But you just can’t throw away an animal,” Karen Andersson, chairman of the animal protection group Dyrebeskyttelsen in Oslo and Akershus, told news bureau NTB. “If you can’t take care of your pet any longer, then you must go to a vet and have it put to sleep.”
She said people can also approach her group, “but we can’t help everybody.” She already has five cats, 13 rabbits and many kittens staying at her private home and the group took in around 3,500 pets last year. Another animal protection group in Oslo was caring 80 cats at its facility as of this week.
Views and News staff