Rescue shelters are being pushed beyond their limits with a record number of sick and malnourished animals being abandoned.
The rising cost of living has many people struggling to make ends meet for themselves and their pets.
Crammed inside HUHA's mobile clinic, Carolyn Press-McKenzie is helping the vet take medical pins from the underside of a young black cat named Bear.
"He had two broken back legs; owners couldn't afford the surgery."
"Even if we can do the surgery and return to the owner, there's often a lot of after-care and expense and ongoing issues like arthritis. A lot of the time, owners decide to surrender the animals to us and call it quits," she said.
The operating room isn't usually where you'd find the animal rescue's chief executive.
But lately, Press-McKenzie has been flat out tending to what she calls a "conveyor belt" of animals turning up in bad shape.
"We're running out of options. I've been at it for 36 years and I've never said no."
"Now, I've had to start saying, this might be a no, but let's see if we can help in another way."
There are easily 50 animals a week she's unable to fully support at HUHA's shelters, she said.
Cats, dogs, ducks, horses, and even a magpie, have been given up by owners who've told HUHA they can no longer afford them.
Outside the mobile clinic, there's a chorus of canines.
Claire Jamieson, the dog shelter manager, routinely checks on her guests, including Frank the French bulldog, who was rescued from a hoarder.
Frank the French bulldog. Photo: RNZ/Angus Dreaver
"His skin was really bad, he was emaciated. He lived in this tiny crate, and it'll be a matter of lifelong skin food and medication to support his health. But he's a real sweetheart," she said.
Frank's recovering nicely, but there's a limit to the number of dogs shelters can take in.
Northland has struggled for years to keep its stray dog population at bay.
But in the 18 years Summer Johnson's been at Bay of Islands Animal Rescue, she says this year's been the worst - 100 times worse.
She described what she sees on the streets in just a single day.
"Dogs ripping into rubbish bags, dogs having escaped and running down the main road with their chains dragging behind them, puppies on front lawns, mum dogs out looking for food, boy dogs looking for mum dogs to impregnate, it's horrific."
She's now run out of room for the animals.
"We never turn away puppies, like litters of puppies. I would rather them held in a crate while we work something out. But there's no room anywhere, so we're literally turning away litters of puppies a day," she said.
SPCA centres across the country are also overrun with unwanted animals, many of which are underweight.
They're trying their best to support owners, like offering food or de-sexing, so they don't have to give them up.
Christchurch centre manager Natasha Sutton said the key to keeping down costs is prevention.
"Desexing your animals so you don't have an unwanted litter and an extra six mouths to feed. Make sure you vaccinate your animals, as it's a lot cheaper than treating an animal with a disease. Vaccination is a fraction of the cost," she said.
The price of pet food and services rose 12.6 percent in the year to the September 2022 quarter according to Stats NZ.
