Postal Un-owned Pets Survey (PUPS)
The Postal Un-owned Pets Survey (PUPS) was carried out to find out some basic information about the numbers and care of the dogs and cats which pass through UK rescues every year, as little was previously known. We sent a questionnaire to 1,380 rescue organisations, asking about their activities in 2010.
Key findings:
• Our survey participants told us that in 2010 they cared for 87,571 dogs and 156,826 cats.
• Their yearly spend was £340 million.
• Seventy five per cent of dogs, and just over 77% of cats, were rehomed.
• Ten per cent of dogs and 13% of cats had to be euthanased.
The results of this work have been published in an open access journal:
Stavisky J, Brennan ML, Downes M, Dean R. Demographics and economic burden of un-owned cats and dogs in the UK: results of a 2010 census. BMC Vet Res. 2012;8:163.
Contacts: Jenny Stavisky, Marnie Brennan, Martin Downes and Rachel Dean