Pleasecheck firstbefore youdonate
Odd shoes, underwear and a video tape of Princess Diana’s funeral are just some of the weird and unsuitable donations the Scottish SPCA have received over the past few years.
Other strange contributions include curtains, crates of fake flowers, 250 raw sausages and 200 Brussel sprouts.
The charity is urging members of the public to check which items they can accept before they donate.
Assistant manager of the Ayrshire Animal Rescue and Rehoming centre, Lynda Hourston, said while the Society are“always grateful for donations”with many given “with the best of intentions,”some items pose a serious health hazard.
Lynda said:“Our centres have received open bags of food containing maggots and cigarette ends, which is why we can’t accept any food that is already open.
“We’ve also received cat litter trays full of faeces and pet beds covered in pet hair.
“We’ve received broken toys, human clothes, rawhide treats and extendable leads. None of which we can use.
“People often donate duvets and pillows not realising that we can’t use them as bedding as they’re too easy for animals to rip up and possibly harm themselves by ingesting or becoming tangled in them.
“We want to spend all of our spare time providing the animals in our centre with the best possible care and it can be very time consuming having to sort out unsuitable donations and make sure items are recycled where possible.”
Lynda said sorting out unsuitable donations is not only costing staff time but it also has a financial impact as a lot of items have to be discarded in the charity’s bins, which they pay for.
She said:“We are also trying to reduce the amount of waste our centres produce as part of our environmental ambitions and incorrect donations have a huge impact on our carbon footprint.
“We don’t want to put anyone off donating to our centres but we would just ask that they take a quick look at our website beforehand to check which items we can and can’t accept.
“If the item they want to donate is not on the list, or is large or something unusual we’d ask them just to give their nearest centre a call first to make sure they can accept it.
“We are so grateful, especially in these difficult times, that people think of us and want to help.”
Anyone wishing to donate items to one of the Scottish SPCA’s animal rescue and rehoming centres can check which items they can accept here or call 03000 999 999 to speak to their local centre.