THE animal welfare and protection community observes International Homeless Animals Day every year on Aug 20 with the aim of raising awareness about the problem of stray animal overpopulation and to urge governments and decision-makers to identify and implement humane solutions for the issue.
On a global scale, over 600 million dogs and 600 million cats are classified as strays. The Covid-19 pandemic and its resulting economic downturn has caused an increase in the number of abandoned pets, especially dogs, as their caregivers lose jobs or homes.