Six-month-old puppies Atlas, Aries and Nova are a set of siblings who have been staying at the SPCA for the past two months, but have not been getting much interest from the public.
SPCA canine team leader Gemma Mitchell said the trio were not getting many applications when normally people would be lining up for puppies.
"But it’s just not happening any more — there has been very little interest for them at all."
The problem of long-term stays for dogs was a nationwide issue, so the SPCA will be running 50% off adoption fees from this Saturday to October 1.
"All the centres around the country are having the same issues, and adoption is really slow for dogs at the moment.
Atlas, Aries and Nova came from a bit of a rough background, so have not had a lot of socialisation.
"They’re prone to be a little nervous and a bit shy, but they have been so brave since they got here, they’ve been meeting new people, they have been getting braver and go exploring.
"They’re just happy-go-lucky puppies and want to be apart of someone’s life."
SPCA general manager of animal services Dr Corey-Regnerus Kell said that, on average, dogs were staying at centres roughly 20 days more than they did the same time last year.
"We know longer times in shelter environments can lead to higher stress and anxiety levels, a higher risk of contracting illnesses — and in some cases, reduced likelihood of adoption."
With the busy kitten season fast approaching, the SPCA would be hard pressed for room.
"We need to ensure our centres have capacity for incoming animals."
