The cost of living crisis is having a worrying impact on pet owners in the North East, according to a study carried out by Dogs Trust.
The charity found that 31% of the region’s dog owners think the rising cost of living in the UK is making it more difficult to give their dogs all they need, with a third (33%) saying they are either ‘very’ or ‘fairly’ worried about how they will care for their dog in the next year. This is higher than the national figure of 30%.
The new regular poll, carried out by YouGov on behalf of Dogs Trust, also found that the rising cost of living would prevent 55% of non-dog owners in the North East from adopting or buying a dog.
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The charity’s poll will track dog owners from a variety of backgrounds, ages and areas of the UK to measure the impact of the cost of living crisis on the nation, month-by-month as the crisis evolves.
This first pulse survey, carried out in the first week of June, found that over two thirds (68%) of dog owners in the UK feel worried, to some extent, about how they will care for their dog in the next year, with 30% either ‘very’ or ‘fairly’ worried.
By far the greatest worry for dog owners was how they would manage to pay vet bills, which almost half (49%) named as their main concern. The second biggest worry was affording dog food (17%).
In the North East this figure was higher, with 54% saying vet bills are their main worry, and their second biggest concern at 25% is the cost of dog food.
This gloomy picture echoes Dogs Trust’s own interactions with both current and future dog owners. The charity, which provides care for dogs in need all over the UK until it can find them new homes, is seeing a steady increase in the number of requests from owners who have made the heart-breaking decision to give up their dog.
The charity said this harks back to the year after the 2008 recession, when the increase in the number of stray and abandoned dogs reached over 25% in the UK.
Owen Sharp, Dogs Trust CEO, said: “We know from the experience of the 2008 recession that economic crisis can and will lead to people needing to give up their beloved dogs. Sadly, many loving dog owners simply won’t be able to afford to keep them.
“At Dogs Trust we’re rehoming and fostering dogs as quickly as we can – but as soon as we free up a kennel space, there’s a dog to fill it again.
“We’ve already taken 13,000 calls this year from owners who need to give up their dogs – a 58% increase on last year.
“We know that dog owners need immediate help and we’re working hard to find ways to support them – but it takes time.
“If you’re really struggling, please contact Dogs Trust – even if we can’t take in your dog immediately, there may be other types of help we can suggest, like our Hope Project, which aims to keep anyone experiencing a housing crisis and their dog together, and helping people find other services such as pet food banks or local charities that could ease the burden.
“We want dog owners to realise that they don’t have to wait until they are in crisis to call us for help.”
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