Denmark’s animal shelters struggling to keep up

The number of animals being housed in ten Danish shelters has risen by 30 percent in the past year and caretakers are stuggling to look after so many animals.

Jared Paolino

Jul 7, 2022

Some 2,000 animals are being housed in just ten shelters across the country, according to Dyrenes Beskyttelse, the animal welfare organisation

The number has risen by 30 percent since last year – and the season is not yet at its peak.

“It is a sadly high number, which unfortunately is increasing every summer,” said Karina Fisker, the head of Dyrenes Beskyttelse’s shelter program.

“Last year we also had many animals that needed help, but this year we’re overflowing! Our boarding schools are full to bursting point, and our employees and volunteers are struggling to keep up.”

Volunteer shortage
In 2021, nearly 800 families fostered animals through Dyrenes Beskyttelse’s shelter program. This year, however, fewer families are opening their homes to animals in need.

“This year we have noticed that people have had many summer plans, as it has been difficult to find enough volunteer foster families,” said Fisker.

“It is simply not possible to save so many animals, without the invaluable help we get from the volunteers.”

Dogs, cats, kittens, rabbits, guinea pigs and birds are among the animals being sheltered by Dyrenes Beskyttelse. The organisation encourages prospective foster families to contact a local shelter through its website.

TOP STORIES

Becoming a stranger in your own country

Many stories are heard about internationals moving to Denmark for the first time. They face hardships when finding a job, a place to live, or a sense of belonging. But what about Danes coming back home? Holding Danish citizenship doesn’t mean your path home will be smoother. To shed light on what returning Danes are facing, Michael Bach Petersen, Secretary General of Danes Worldwide, unpacks the reality behind moving back
How small cubes spark great green opportunities: a Chinese engineer’s entrepreneurial journey in Denmark

Hao Yin, CEO of a high-tech start-up TEGnology, shares how he transformed a niche patent into marketable products as an engineer-turned-businessman, after navigating early setbacks. “We can’t just wait for ‘groundbreaking innovations’ and risk missing the market window,” he says. “The key is maximising the potential of existing technologies in the right contexts.”
Gangs of Copenhagen

While Copenhagen is rated one of the safest cities in the world year after year, it is no stranger to organized crime, which often springs from highly professional syndicates operating from the shadows of the capital. These are the most important criminal groups active in the city
“The Danish underworld is now more tied to Scandinavia”

Carsten Norton is the author of several books about crime and gangs in Denmark, a journalist, and a crime specialist for Danish media such as TV 2 and Ekstra Bladet.
Right wing parties want nuclear power in Denmark

For 40 years, there has been a ban on nuclear power in Denmark. This may change after all right-wing parties in the Danish Parliament have expressed a desire to remove the ban.
Tunø: An island running out of time

The island of Tunø harbors a community of 74 adults and one child. There are no cars and only one connection to the rest of the world. Now, climate change threatens it

Connect club

Connect Club is your gateway to a vibrant programme of events and an international community in Denmark.

Career

Inside Denmark’s innovation engine

With half of its staff being international, the BioInnovation Institute reflects Denmark’s broader transformation into a global innovation hub. But can the country—and Europe—keep up the pace? “If reforms are made now, we can close the gap in ten years,” explains BII’s CEO
International designers struggle to find jobs in Denmark

Many internationals come to Denmark to work as designers, but the field appears to be one of the hardest to break into. The Copenhagen Post spoke with two internationals struggling to find their way into the industry.
This rural town in Denmark has a 17 percent international workforce — Here’s how

With a low unemployment rate and aging population, the municipality is actively recruiting workers from abroad to fill essential roles and support long-term growth