Today in Parliament, Abigail spoke about the importance of animal rehoming services that take in lost, stray and abandoned animals and rehome them to loving fur-ever homes, in the midst of the current pound crisis we are facing.
(1) That this House notes that:
(a) the Blacktown Animal Rehoming Centre [BARC] is the first custom-built rehoming centre in Australia designed to supply services not previously offered by traditional animal "pounds";
(b) the centre was opened in May 2023 and is specially designed to provide each animal the maximum opportunity to be rehabilitated and adopted back out to the community, reducing holding times, increasing adoptions and decreasing euthanasia rates;
(c) BARC takes in lost, stray and abandoned animals within the Western Sydney area to be rehomed; and
(d) the centre is the largest facility of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere currently providing housing for 135 dogs and 230 cats.
(2) That this House further notes that:
(a) thousands of animals across New South Wales are in need of loving homes with pounds and shelters overwhelmed with displaced animals and increased surrender waitlists exacerbated by the cost-of-living crisis and inadequate rental laws;
(b) council pounds remain under-resourced and under-regulated and often fail to meet basic animal welfare standards; and
(c) according to the issues paper into Rehoming Companion Animals in NSW prepared by the Centre for International Economics for the Office of Local Government, in 2020-21 one in 10 dogs and one in three cats who enter these council pounds in New South Wales were being killed for reasons other than illness or injury.
(3) That this House:
(a) thanks all those involved in the development and operation of BARC and all those actively contributing to animal rehoming efforts across New South Wales;
(b) recognises the pressures being faced by council pounds, animal shelters and rescue organisations across our State; and
(c) urges the Government to take action to fix the broken pound and shelter system in New South Wales.