Rise in UK pet theft

[madcat]

Cat owners are being urged to take precautions to protect their animals after new research has shown that pet theft in the UK has hit an all time high.

Although cat theft is much less of a problem than dog theft, the increase is quite significant according to the Missing Pets Bureau.

In the survey, commissioned by Sainsbury's Bank, over 950,000 people claim that they have had their cat or dogs stolen over the last 5 years. If true, this would equate to over 520 dogs and cats being stolen every day, with around 50,000 more dogs being stolen than cats.

Simon Worsfold at the Missing Pets Bureau, says:

"We have dealt with an alarming number of pet nappings recently. The number of dog thefts reported to us from 2004 to 2005 rose by 141% while cat thefts rose by 55%. With cats we find it is generally more a problem of them straying than being stolen. We can only assume that cats are stolen for the profit made from selling desirable breeds. It is important to be certain that a new cat is from a reputable source. The issue of cat theft is definitely one that needs addressing but we are keen not to alarm people. We hope to give owners a chance to take precautions. For that, we would recommend using as many forms of identification as possible".


This article was taken from Your Cat Magazine.

MadCat