Cash-strapped Britons abandoning pets as living costs soar

The UK is currently witnessing a record inquiry for dog and cat returns as many owners are finding the additional cost of food plus hundreds of pounds in vet bills no longer manageable. 

As Britons see the tightest squeeze on living standards since at least the 1960s, many are downgrading to cut down expenses. The pet population, that saw a spike in pandemic and lockdown times, seem to be a prime target of this trend as households brace for energy bills to more than triple in January on last year, hammering people’s incomes. 

“We are concerned that there is going to be an increasing reason for people bringing their dogs in to Battersea,” Steve Craddock, who manages Battersea animal charity in soutwest London, told Reuters. 

The rehoming centre is taking care of 206 dogs and 164 cats. 

Exotic pets such as snakes and lizards are also proving too expensive due to their need for specialist heating and lighting. 

Three snakes, including an 8-foot (2.4-metre) boa constrictor, were recently dumped in pillow cases outside a reptile shop, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) told Reuters. 

Dogs Trust, which currently has 692 dogs needing homes in 21 centres across the country, said the last time it had seen anything like this was in the wake of the 2008 financial crash. 

“This cost-of-living crisis has crept up on us a lot more quickly than people ever expected,” said the Trust’s operations director Adam Clowes. 

Such is the pressure that the charity is considering whether it should expand an emergency support fund, normally reserved for people on welfare benefits who need short-term financial support to keep their pets, to more middle-income earners. 

Animal charities say they are also worried the squeeze on living standards will have an impact on donations, though they are not seeing this yet. 

The applications for readoption of pets too have also dropped dramatically. Charity Woodgreen claims applications to adopt animals have dropped to the 100s a month from around 10,000 during lockdowns. 

Pilar Gómez-Igbo, an assistant editor, could have been one potential owner, but having done some research she is now worried about the extra costs.