For people who work caring for abandoned animals, Christmas can be a harsh time of year, when the grim reality faced by many unwanted or abused household pets sours the usual festive cheer. I first visited Cardiff Dog's Home on a hot and sticky summer day in 2007, when my boyfriend and I were considering taking on an unwanted pooch in our lives. We didn't take a dog home that day, but I was impressed with the facility and the dedication of the volunteers I met there who were taking the dogs out for exercise as we looked around (the home has over 200 volunteer dog walkers on its books, all members of the public).

For the staff, working at the home is much more than just a job. Senior kennel attendant Michelle Edwards has been working at the home for 10 years, and has adopted five dogs from it. She says there's a noticeable increase in the number of dogs they deal with at this time of year.

To discourage people from giving up puppies after the Christmas novelty has worn off, Cardiff Dogs Home has a policy of not re-homing dogs or puppies between 20 December and 1 January, to prevent unwanted dogs coming back when the fun and excitement of the holiday season wears off and the reality of caring for the new pet hits home.

But Michelle tells me even this doesn't put off some individuals – who turn up with unwanted dogs in their cars, let them out in the home's car park, and then drive off.

Michelle takes me around the home, where I meet some of the unwanted pooches who make up the home's residents at the moment. Kennel after kennel of sweet, unloved dogs - mistreated, abandoned, or who came to the home through social services. It's heartbreaking, and I really have to control myself from saying I'll take them all home.

Michelle brings out some dogs out for me to meet and fuss. The first is a big brown Weimaraner cross with green eyes called Handsome Hank (who was originally named Bunk but renamed by kennel staff), who was a cherished family pet until the couple got pregnant and decided they couldn't take care of him anymore.

The second is a cream-coloured American bulldog cross, called Cookie, who was originally dumped and brought into the home when she was four months old. She was rehomed, but then abandoned again a few months later. "It happens a lot," says Michelle, who says that people often don't realise the commitment needed to look after a dog.

It's a sad story, given the wonderful companions these dogs could easily make for a family. "They're desperate for homes, and really need the love a family could offer," says Michelle.