Adopt a Rescue Dog in Gloucestershire

Aura’s Rescue began after its founders visited Romania and witnessed the suffering of dogs in public shelters, where abuse, neglect, and abandonment were common. Inspired by a local rescuer named Aura, who cared for overlooked and long-stay dogs from her small home shelter, the team committed to helping those considered least likely to be adopted. The rescue focuses particularly on older, traumatised, and fearful dogs who have spent years waiting without hope. By bringing these dogs into foster homes in the UK, Aura’s Rescue provides patient rehabilitation, giving them the chance to adjust, heal, and finally experience safety and love.

Barking Mad Dog Rescue is a UK charity helping vulnerable and abandoned dogs in Romania find safe, loving homes. Founded after the rescue of a stray dog named Pixie in 2013, the charity has since rehomed more than 3,000 dogs in the UK and Germany and provides daily food and care for hundreds of dogs across shelters and local communities in Romania.

Cheltenham Animal Shelter is a long-established animal welfare charity that has been helping homeless animals for nearly 100 years. Based in Gloucestershire, the charity rescues and rehomes unwanted and abandoned cats, dogs, and small animals from across the county. Originally founded by local volunteers caring for stray cats in the late 1800s, the shelter moved to its current site in 1939 and continues to expand its work today. As a member of the Association of Dogs and Cats Homes, Cheltenham Animal Shelter adheres to high welfare standards while also promoting responsible pet ownership through education and community outreach.

Cotswolds Dogs & Cats Home has been caring for vulnerable animals in Gloucestershire for over 80 years. Each year, the charity supports more than 1,000 animals through rehoming services and community outreach. Alongside finding loving new families for pets in need, the organisation operates subsidised veterinary clinics to assist financially vulnerable owners, ensuring no animal suffers due to cost. Through compassionate care and practical support, Cotswolds Dogs & Cats Home continues to change lives—one animal at a time.

Forest of Dean Dog Rescue is a small independent charity dedicated to rescuing and rehoming unwanted, abandoned, and often mistreated dogs. Specialising in older dogs, ex-breeding dogs, local strays, and those with complex needs, the rescue places most dogs in foster homes for careful assessment and matching to suitable adopters. When foster space is limited, local boarding kennels are used, and dogs with ongoing medical needs may remain in lifetime foster care funded by the charity. Entirely volunteer-run and supported by donations and fundraising, every dog is vaccinated, neutered, microchipped, and treated before rehoming.

Lola’s Legacy is a completely volunteer-run, home-based rescue organisation with no paid staff, ensuring that every donation goes directly toward saving dogs’ lives. Relying solely on public generosity, the charity funds rescue, transport, rehabilitation and often significant veterinary treatment for dogs rescued from UK pounds, neglect and abandonment. Adoption fees cover only a small portion of the true cost of care, making donations vital to their work. Through careful assessment and rehabilitation, Lola’s Legacy works to match each dog with a loving home suited to both the animal and adopter.

Lurcher SOS is a Suffolk-based rescue charity dedicated to helping lurchers, greyhounds, whippets, salukis, and other sighthounds in need. Founded in 2010 by lifelong lurcher owners, the charity operates through a network of volunteers, foster homes, and supporters across the UK. Lurcher SOS focuses on rescuing dogs at risk, including those facing euthanasia, from the UK and abroad, providing rehabilitation in foster homes rather than kennels. All dogs receive full veterinary care before adoption, and the charity relies entirely on public donations and fundraising to continue its life-saving work.

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), founded in 1824, is the oldest and largest animal welfare organisation in the world, operating across England and Wales. Funded primarily by voluntary donations, the charity rescues animals from cruelty, investigates neglect and organised animal crime, and provides advice to improve animal welfare. Its network includes rescue teams, animal hospitals, rehabilitation centres and over 150 locally run branches that support rehoming, neutering and community welfare services. Through national and international outreach, the RSPCA works to prevent cruelty and ensure animals receive the care and protection they deserve.