The DSPCA will be shutting its doors to would-be pet-owners later this week until after Christmas.
The State's biggest animal shelter has taken the step after the experience of previous years, where there has been a rush to buy pets in the run-up to Christmas and a rush to return them later.
The society's chief inspector, Mr Maurice Byrne, said it had had similar experiences to those of London's Battersea Dogs' Home, where a survey found that about 60 per cent of pets adopted at Christmas are returned.
He said most of the people who came looking for pets at this time of year were unaccompanied parents. "There's no discussion at home about who's going to look after it, who's going to clean up after it. There are fights and then we are called in.
"It's very traumatic for the pet. They get the cuddles one week and then they're screaming out the back garden, dumped. So we're just going to try and put a stop to it this year."
The shelter is receiving an increasing number of exotic pets, such as snakes, scorpions and tarantulas, he said. "We take them and send them to colleagues who have the knowledge and equipment to look after them."
