Pets pay the price as cost of living increases

The festivities may only just be over but it is man’s best friends who are now starting to feel the bite of the recession.

More owners are abandoning their four-legged friends because they can no longer afford to keep them.

Rescue centres across Yorkshire are struggling to cope with the huge rise in the number of cats and dogs found wandering the streets or abandoned at the vet’s.

The Blue Cross, which runs a rescue centre in Thirsk, has had double the number of stray and abandoned pets this year compared with the same period last year.

“We’ve had dogs left in cages on the doorstep overnight and dogs released on our site,” says Jenny Day, animal welfare assistant and volunteer co-ordinator at the North Yorkshire centre.

She says the shelter is constantly full with 30 dogs currently on the waiting list, many of which are pedigree.

“There are a lot of Staffie crosses, a lot of lurcher types and greyhounds; dogs that clearly have cost a lot of money to buy and have been turned loose. “

Part of the problem is caused by pet owners losing their jobs and being forced to sell up and move into rented accommodation.

Many landlords will not allow tenants to keep pets and, as animal shelters are full, desperate owners are simply turning their dogs out into the streets.

The Dogs Trust, which has a rescue and re-homing centre in Leeds, says that the number of stray or abandoned dogs reached an 11-year high in 2011.

The charity has seen a 56 per cent increase in the number of people handing over their dogs because of housing issues.

The Trust also reports a dramatic 118 per cent increase in the number of stray dogs having to be destroyed by local authorities in Yorkshire.

The luckier dogs rounded up by dog wardens are sent to animal shelters, but rescue centres are all struggling to find the space.

Nationally 20 stray dogs a day are being put to sleep because they are unable to be re-homed.

Amanda Sands, Leeds Dogs Trust manager says: “Across the UK, local authorities are finding the economic climate means some people can no longer afford to have a dog.

“Certain breeds are more likely to be discarded, such as bull breeds, and there is a worrying increase in owners ‘disposing’ of their dogs when they no longer want them.”

The charity discovered many owners refusing to claim their pets once a dog warden had found and identified their dogs.

“They do not want to put dogs to sleep but they are struggling to cope with such huge numbers of strays and a changing attitude to dog ownership,” she adds.

The Dogs Trust is campaigning for compulsory microchipping which involves a tiny chip being inserted into the scruff of an animal’s neck containing the owner’s details.

The charities are finding that cases of neglect are also increasing. The Blue Cross says it is spending several hundred pounds a month on dogs that require considerable veterinary care.

Jenny Day says: “Recently we had a beautiful lurcher dog brought in who had a terrible skin complaint.

“It’s clearly very painful for her and very red and raw.

“Clearly someone has not been able to afford the treatment for her skin, but she’ll make a lovely pet.”

Meanwhile Haworth Cat Rescue has had the busiest year in its 19-year history.

The charity is battling to re-house the hundreds of cats hoping to find refuge at its centre.

“In 2010 we took in 436 cats for the whole of the year. By the beginning of December we had already taken in 478 cats,” says Sara Atkinson, the charity’s chief executive.

“We have a six-month waiting list.”

She says there are at least 400 cats on the waiting list from owners who are desperate to off-load pets.

“We are finding that people either cannot afford to keep their cat or are having to sell up and move into rented accommodation.

“In many cases the landlord won’t let them keep their pets.”

The phones don’t stop ringing in the charity’s small office on a steep hill in Cross Roads, just outside Keighley.

Reports come in of nine cats found inside a housing association home nearby.

All of the cats will have to be taken in as emergencies.

“This is a huge intake for us and one of the cats is pregnant,” says Sara.

“This will set us back £1,000 when you take in the vets’ fees, food, micro-chipping and everything else.”

While more cats are coming in, the problem is compounded by the fact that it is now much harder to raise the money needed to house them.

The harsh economic climate means fewer people are willing to donate funds.

“We are trying to be more resourceful but we have to put in a huge amount to keep the funds coming in,” says Sara.

Several other rescue centres have closed recently, largely as a result of financial pressure.

On top of that, less people are able to afford increasingly expensive vet’s bills and fewer cats are being neutered.

This in turn leaves animal shelters having to pick up the tab in the form of growing litters of kittens.

In September the charity was called in to rescue 22 kittens and an adult cat which had been found in a basket outside a house in Yeadon.

The charity also says that feral cats are becoming a huge problem across the region.

“The longer they are left fending for themselves, the harder it is to tame them,” says Sara.

“We need to trap them and bring them in. We try to find them homes on farms where they can be outside.”

The charity is now appealing for donations to help build a brand new centre.

It hopes to increase its capacity from 17 to 100 pens and would also like to develop an education and awareness programme to encourage sensible cat ownership.

Along with other animal welfare charities, Haworth Cat Rescue is campaigning for a change in the law to convince more landlords to accept animals. In some cases the charity says landlords are unaware that the standard tenancy agreement they are using has a clause which bans pets. The Dogs Trust is also running their Lets with Pets campaign to encourage more landlords to welcome family pets. A recent survey found 78 per cent of pet owners struggled to find privately rented accommodation.

At the same time it is estimated that 43 per cent of the population owns a pet.

To deal with the deluge of unwanted animals the Blue Cross is planning to set up a short-term foster scheme, but it urges people to plan ahead.

“We do want to try and help everybody but people do have to realize that all rescue centres are full most of the time,” says Jenny. “We can’t just take in dogs on the day that people phone up.”

But it is not just small household animals which are feeling the effects.

Horse welfare charities say they have been shocked at the change and that unprecedented numbers of horses and ponies are being abandoned.

Redwings, the largest horse sanctuary in the UK, says the number of straying or abandoned horses reported to it jumped from 160 in 2009 to 241 in 2010.

• Anyone finding a stray dog should report it to the dog warden service through the local council.

Wardens collect stray dogs and then keep them for up to seven days at kennels.

Every stray dog needs to go through local dog warden services so there is a chance they may be identified.

Strays should not be taken directly to a rescue centre.

All dogs must wear a collar and tag with the owner’s name and address. If a dog does not have a collar and tag the owner can be prosecuted and fined up to £5,000.

Go to www.DogLost.co.uk for a free on-line directory of lost and found dogs.