The Scottish SPCA has confirmed the reception area at its Hamilton Rescue and Rehoming centre will open again from today, Monday, March 28.
The charity’ is looking forward to welcoming visitors back to their reception, which will be open from 1pm to 4pm daily, for the first time since early 2020. Members of the public will be able to chat to the team, drop in donations or get help with filling in their rehoming applications.
However, perhaps the biggest change to come to the way the charity operates will be that members of the public will no longer be able to access the centres and view animals in the same way that they could prior to 2020.
Full centres will not be open to the public as the charity’s animal care teams have noticed a considerable improvement in the temperament and behaviour of animals during the pandemic. Many of the animals in the Scottish SPCA’s care need dedicated rehabilitative support and animals have been considerably less stressed without the presence of people they don’t know around them.
The Society now rehomes animals online and carries out virtual home checks. This has helped to speed up the rehoming process and find fantastic homes for thousands of animals. The reception areas will be open every day for people to pop in to discuss rehoming.
Chief executive Kirsteen Campbell said: “When our centres were forced to close due to the pandemic, we saw quite a drastic improvement in the stress levels of many animals. We have sorely missed having members of the public in our centres for the past two years and are excited to welcome people back albeit in a slightly different capacity. Ultimately, this new approach is the best thing for the welfare of the animals we care for.
“Some animals can find it quite overwhelming in a busy centre, especially if many of the faces they see are unknown to them. We’re optimistic our new way of operating will combine the best of both worlds, where animal welfare is prioritised and people can still pop in to discuss rehoming or drop off a donation.”
Anyone looking to adopt an animal can view and apply for all the animals the charity currently has available here: https://bit.ly/3tzEabv
If anyone is unable to apply online for any reason they should visit the centre’s reception during opening hours for assistance with completing the form.
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