An Auckland non-profit organisation is furious at what it calls a deepening crisis after a litter of six puppies was found dumped in a shoe box in a block of public toilets.
According to the Saving Hope Foundation, a woman using the bathroom at the Weymouth boat ramp in Manurewa last week discovered a “slightly moving and squeaky” shoe box.
The woman and her partner opened the box and found six tiny newborn puppies with their umbilical cords attached.
They put the box in their car and headed straight to the vet, where the puppies were warmed and fed.
One of the puppies, named Frosty, was much smaller than the others and passed away in his foster mother’s arms the next day.
Saving Hope Foundation’s Janine Hinton said it was the fourth lot of dumped puppies the group had dealt with in two weeks.
She said one litter was found near railway lines, while another was found in the rubbish. Two of the puppies found in the rubbish had since passed away.
“This is a common occurrence in New Zealand,” Hinton said. “And the sad part about it is how many pups are dumped in the bush and the river. You can bet that’s going on as well.”
She said puppies being dumped had become a “crisis” that was getting worse and said Auckland Council, SPCA and the Government “need to be held accountable”.
‘More desexing needed’
She criticised Auckland Council’s roaming dog pilot, claiming it targeted the wrong communities and was not far-reaching enough.
She also accused the council of not spending enough money on its animal management.
“Do you not think the money that’s keeping a dog in a pound for seven days and euthanasing it could [be used to stop] some of these dogs from being born?”
She said more effort needed to go towards the desexing of animals and education for dog owners and their families.
“We’re trying to break the cycle of what these children are seeing, how their parents treat the dogs, to what they learn from their parents.
“We know that if we can’t take them in, which sometimes we can’t, those pups are all gonna breed and we start the cycle again.”
The foundation wanted to see the law changed, but was tired of waiting.
“In the time it takes to change the legislation, you could be out desexing all these dogs that people want desexed,” Hinton said.
“It’s going to cost a lot of money, but then you’re saving money by having so many fewer dogs and euthanising them.
“It’s time to make sure that the legislation states people have to [desex their dogs].”
SPCA and council doing everything they can
The SPCA said it was “investing heavily” in desexing dogs and cats nationwide and was doing as many procedures as possible.
“However, we need the community to say desexing must become a priority for pet owners,” SPCA national programme manager Rebecca Dobson said.
Dobson said she understood Saving Hope’s frustration, and agreed the scale of the “desexing crisis” in New Zealand was “immense”.
“It is clear that more support is needed across the board. At SPCA, we are deeply committed to addressing this issue.”
SPCA said that since 2022, it had desexed 1294 dogs in Auckland, preventing an estimated 3235 unwanted puppies. In the 2024-2025 financial year, it had desexed 19,716 animals nationally, preventing an estimated 71,943 unwanted kittens and puppies. Since launching its national desexing programme in 2022, the total had climbed to over 55,000 animals, preventing 207,810 unwanted kittens and puppies.
Auckland Council said its staff would love to see much higher rates of desexing in Auckland and to have far fewer dogs coming through its shelters.
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“Although desexing is not one of the council’s core responsibilities, and our resources and legislative powers to carry out desexing are limited, we are using all tools available to us in this space,” said Robert Irvine, GM licensing and compliance at the council.
It said that since June this year, 197 dogs have been desexed through pilot programmes with the SPCA and its vet clinic.
Over the past year, it responded to over 16,000 reports of roaming dogs, impounding over 10,000 dogs across its three shelters.
“The vast majority of these impounded dogs were un-desexed, unregistered, and unable to be rehomed due to unsocial behaviour.”
It said only around 35% were able to be claimed by their owners, “sadly” resulting in around 60% being euthanised.
‘No one organisation’ can fix crisis
SPCA and Auckland Council said stopping the crisis would take a huge effort.
“Studies have shown that to have a measurable impact on decreasing unwanted animals, you need to desex 75% of the population or higher,” Dobson said.
She estimated that doing this would cost more than $75 million.
“The scale of the desexing challenge in New Zealand is bigger than any one organisation, and not any one organisation can solve alone – not SPCA, not councils, not rescues. We need each other.”
Auckland Council has previously called on the Government to allow councils greater powers under the Dog Control Act to set their own desexing policies. It also launched a campaign focused on careless owners.
No plans to update dog legislation
Local Government Minister Simon Watts said the Government had no plans to amend the Dog Control Act but the Department of Internal Affairs was looking at non-regulatory measures to support dog control. This included improving the quality and consistency of data related to dogs.
Watts said he was “aware of the issues that some communities are struggling with – the impacts of irresponsible dog ownership, including the dumping of dogs”.
“Councils work hard in their communities to enforce the Dog Control Act, but dog owners must play their part too. I urge them to take their obligations seriously, and encourage them to desex their pets.”
He said councils also had the authority to develop dog control bylaws tailored to their local circumstances.
“This enables them to respond to specific community needs and risks more effectively,” Watts said.
Dog owners need to ‘step up’
Both organisations said dog owners needed to step up and desex their animals.
“Desexing can’t just be something rescue groups and SPCA push, it needs to become a priority for all pet owners,” Dobson said.
Irvine said irresponsible dog owners needed to change their behaviour. He said animal management officers were working with dog owners “on a daily basis” to provide education, as well as doing visits at schools, marae and at community events.
“We are also striving to reach dog owners and show the impact of their actions through behaviour change campaigns, including our latest roaming dogs commercials.”
