The SPA animal shelters are welcoming even more hairballs than usual this year.

"People tend to abandon them more because they did not anticipate" what would become of their animals in a context of health crisis, notes Céline, the manager of a site in Seine-et-Marne, where visited Europe 1.

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Each year, the period of going on vacation is synonymous with the abandonment of pets in France.

They are thus several thousand to remain on the side of the road, sometimes literally, at this time.

Direct consequence: the shelters of the Society for the Protection of Animals (SPA) are usually full on the last weekend of July.

But this year, the situation is even worse than usual, according to the SPA.

"People tend to abandon them more because they did not anticipate" the future when adopting their hairball during confinement, notes Céline, the manager of a site in Seine-et-Marne, where Europe 1 went.

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Lots of "unthinking" adoptions in recent months

Here, the refuge has been full for several weeks already. In the huge cat enclosure, there is not a single space left. Frequently, Céline finds abandoned animals in boxes in front of the shelter's gate. On the dog side, there are only a few boxes left. The manager can only regret "all the 'crush' and unreflected adoptions" that have taken place in recent months. She tells a classic pattern that too often leads to abandonment: "We are bored, we are in confinement, so we take an animal". "And then there is the vacation. So you have to place them, you have to keep them ..." Not everyone will have this chance.

"There you have Doug, who is a 13 year old golden retriever who has been found wandering and has not been claimed by his owners. He doesn't like solitude too much because as soon as you don't take care from him, as you can hear ... "In the background, the barking of the dog is indeed heard.

"He needs teachers present," Céline concludes.

"We save two little grandpa"

Finding new owners is the best solution for these abandoned animals. In addition to cats and dogs, many rodents are also waiting to join a household that can accommodate them. David and Jérôme took the plunge. Having come to the refuge, they leave with two kittens. "We want to take them all but we don't have a house that is 3,000 square meters of land, so two is already good. We are saving two little grandfathers," they rejoice. "It's a new life that begins, for them and for us." In this refuge, 100 cats and almost as many dogs are still waiting their turn.