AN unlucky pigeon is looking for an owner after he lost his homing instinct.

The bird is currently sitting pretty at the SPCA’s Cardonald centre along with a whole host of other animals waiting for their forever home.

Kicking off today, the animal welfare charity will be holding a Rehoming Week to encourage people to rehome rather than buy their next pet so that all of their animals can have a happy ending.

Since being founded in 1839, the charity has cared for thousands of unwanted pets - from dogs, cats and rabbits to snakes and birds.

For Marley and Riley, Cardonald's longest serving canine residents, being in the centre is far from ideal.

Alan Grant, senior animal care assistant, says the pair are “too smart” for their own good.

Riley, a cross boxer, was rehomed for 70 days but was brought back because he wasn’t suitable for the family. He has been back in the Cardonald centre for three weeks.

Alan said: “He has a lot of separation anxiety and he can’t be around other dogs.

“I’ve been training him for the past three weeks since he’s been back and he’s improved a lot.

“He’s so smart, he always needs to be doing something otherwise he gets agitated. He doesn’t cope well with being in the kennels and listening to all the other dogs but he would be great with a suitable owner.”

Marley, a cross American bulldog, has the same issue and has been with the charity for 189 days.

She is thought to be aged between 3 and 6-years-old and has a nervous personality.

Alan works with the dogs, training and socialising them to prepare them for life outside the centre.

It's not an easy task as the dogs sometimes struggle to adjust to life in the kennels and are often sleep deprived and uncooperative.

He explains: "They can never fully relax in here because of all the other dogs and the noises.

"Once their out and using their energy, they're great."

Of all the animals, the majority of them are strays, with the others being taken from their owners or being handed in voluntarily after circumstances meant their owners could no longer look after them.

“Education and neutering has helped reduce the number of strays we get in but puppy trafficking is the biggest problem now", Alan explains.

The charity has previously raised concerns over trafficked pups which often reach their new owner via the dealers and develop diseases such as parvo virus and giardia.

Young dogs often die from these diseases which is extremely distressing for the owners.

Incidents of people responding to misleading adverts for dogs online and being disappointed when they eventually arrive, leads to a number of dogs being left with the SPCA.

According to Alan, the centre can get two or three dogs in a week originally from online websites.

The issue is high on the agenda for the charity who is currently spearheading a multi-agency fight against it.

The Cardonald centre has undergone a £6 million extension, meaning they are the only two-tiered kennel blocks in Scotland and can house 150 dogs and 48 cats.

Every year, they are able to care for 3,000 abused, abandoned or injured animals.

In their care right now is, among others, Blossom the guinea pig, Punch the corn snake, Smalls the terrapin and Barley the rabbit.

Each of them is cared for by onsite staff who work round the clock to make their stay as comfortable as possible.

Anyone who is interested in rehoming can look at some of the centre's residents online. After coming to visit, they will be asked to fill out a pre-homing questionnaire and undergo a meeting to make sure that it's the best match.

As for the centre's lone pigeon, the future is unknown.

"We contacted his owner and he told us to set him free and he would find his way home. Clearly it didn't work last time so we're not sure whether to take the chance", Alan explains.