BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) — Animal shelters in Baton Rouge are seeing a familiar and concerning trend as the holidays come to an end. There has been an increase in pets being surrendered.
Shelter staff said many animals adopted or given as gifts during the holidays are returned weeks later once families realize they weren’t fully prepared for the responsibility of caring for a pet long-term.
Common reasons for surrender included lack of time, unexpected costs, and behavioral challenges. Shelters stress that adoption is a serious, long-term commitment and not a seasonal decision…