Recession affecting pets

It seems global recession is taking a heavy toll on pets' lives in Britain. Animal welfare charities here have warned of pets rapidly becoming the forgotten victims of the economic downturn.

According to Britain's oldest and popular home for dogs, Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, the number of people handing pets over for financial reasons has doubled in the past year, the Daily Express reported.

The Blue Cross, a British animal welfare charity with animal hospitals and animal adoption services, says that this year so far it has taken in 1,530 stray and abandoned animals, which is up 50 percent over last year.

The animal welfare charity group Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals(RSPCA) cited a study suggesting that stray dog numbers were at a 10-year high and said inquiries from owners struggling to meet the costs of keeping pets were 'steadily increasing'.