Bright idea to help black dogs find new homes
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Colourful sweaters are being knitted across the Highlands in a bid to combat a new phenomenon called Black Dog Syndrome.
The theory is that black or dark-coloured pooches are less likely to be rehomed as they do not catch the eye of people visiting the SSPCA shelter at Inshes, Inverness, or checking out photographs online.
Their features do not show up quite as well in pictures and any white or grey hairs can make black dogs look older than they really are.
Staff have therefore enlisted the help of the Scottish Womens Institute (SWI) to knit a range of bright jumpers for the darker animnals to wear so they stand out amongst the crowd.
The SWI agreed to step in and lend a hand as part of their 100th anniversary celebrations.
The charity’s national chairwoman, Christine Hutton, said: “We are encouraging our members to pick up their knitting needles and help a homeless hound.
“Some of Scotland’s top craftswomen are making multi-coloured dog coats in aid of homeless pets desperately seeking loving new homes to boost their appeal and help them become rehomed more quickly.
“It’s sad to think of black dogs being less appealing simply because of the colour of their coats, but we hope that our knitters will be able to kit them out in coats of many colours and improve the chances of them being rehomed more quickly.”
Black dogs have had a bit of an image problem through the ages, often appearing as evil forces representing death in folk tales while both Sir Walter Scott and Sherlock Holmes creator Arthur Conan Doyle used dark spectral hounds in their poems and stories.
SSPCA Superintendent Sharon Comrie said Black Dog Syndrome was not a myth and darker-coloured dogs did take longer to find new homes.
“It’s a really creative idea to knit coloured jackets to show these dogs off to their best advantage,” she said.
“Knowing that the SWI has members in every part of Scotland, many of whom are extremely dextrous when it comes to traditional crafts, means that we’ll hopefully be able to help animals in the nine rescue and rehoming centres we operate there.
“Knitted jackets will be ideal because they will be soft on the skin, have an element of give and stretch and can be created in any, or many, colours of wool.
“Every knitted jacket that we receive will be put to good use at our rehoming centres across Scotland and with the SWI knitters’ support, we will be able to build up a collection of special jackets for our dark dogs to wear with pride.”
Ms Hutton added: “Our members love a challenge and this will support the efforts of the SSPCA which does a fantastic job in promoting animal welfare and strives to end animal cruelty across the nation.
“We hope, in our own special way, that the SWI can play a small part in its efforts to match rescued animals with new owners.”
