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More than 17 million UK households own pets, according to research commissioned by the Pet Food Manufacturers’ Association.

Or in other words, 13 million dogs and 12 million cats. That is a lot of meat consumed, before you even begin to consider the impact cats can have on local wildlife.

´óÏó´«Ã½ 5 Live’s The Big Green Money Show decided to look into whether we can lower the environmental footprint of our pets after requests from listeners.

In this week’s episode Deborah Meaden and Felicity Hannah visit Battersea Dogs and Cats Home to hear from experts and a pet food manufacturer.

Here are five things they learned.

Can I feed my dog vegan food’ was the most frequently asked question by listeners.

More research is needed according to the BVA

Vegan or vegetarian food is never suitable for cats, according to Justine Shotton, senior vice-president of the British Veterinary Association.

“We know that for dogs it is possible for them to have a vegetarian or vegan diet but at the moment we don’t have the studies to support lifelong health benefits and risks,” she says.

But Justine hopes that with more research, these products could be options for the future.

Deborah and Felicity also learned that pet food manufactured in the UK is usually a by-product of the human food chain and often made from the parts of the animal that we humans don’t like to eat which, if not fed to our pets, it might otherwise be wasted.

The market research firm Mintel estimates that the UK market for pet products and services was worth £1.9bn in 2021.

Play and walks cost nothing

We’re in a cost of living crisis and shouldn’t feel we need to buy lots of expensive and unsustainable products for our pets says Justine Shotton of the BVA.

Instead she says we should consider what our animals really want and need from us to live their best lives, giving the example that a pet “might just prefer a walk or an hour’s worth of play” over a new toy.

“I have learned this from my cats” says Deborah. “I keep buying them the best toys and they just want [to play with] leaves. They love their leaves”.

Battersea Dogs and Cats Home says it is seeing more abandoned pets coming through the door, probably as a result of the cost of living crisis.

Battersea is seeing more kittens through its doors as the cost of living crisis bites

“We’re already starting to see a material increase in the number of dogs and cats needing our help” says chief executive Peter Laurie.

“This September we saw a 58% increase in the number of dogs coming to our gates, against September last year.”

Battersea is keen to point out that it will never judge anyone who needs to leave an animal with them, and says despite its own costs increasing, the charity is there for every animal needing its help.

Deborah and Felicity met many of the animals starting new lives at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.

Deborah Meaden meets one of the Battersea dogs looking for a new home

“By coming to a rescue centre you are taking on an existing animal rather than fuelling the demand for the production of new animals,” Peter Laurie, Battersea’s boss says. "We've got hundreds of dogs and cats across our centres which are eagerly awaiting new homes."

At Battersea, the cats and dogs which come through its doors are checked over by vets and behavioural experts before being re-homed.

"It is absolutely better and we encourage people to adopt from UK rescue centres rather than buy puppies from private ownership" says Justine Shotton of the BVA.

It might seem obvious, but taking good care of your pet means you are more likely to avoid expensive vet bills and treatments which can increase the animal’s environmental impact.

Thor, Battersea resident. (Hear more from him in the podcast)

The BVA recommends neutering your pet and keeping up with vaccinations. Ensuring your pet eats healthily and is not overweight is also important.

However regularly applying topical flea treatments to dogs and cats could be causing more harm than good.

The BVA recently changed its policy to recommend a “risk based approach,” rather than advising owners to routinely apply spot-on treatments every few months.

“It’s really important we don’t contaminate the environment with these products” says Justine Shotton.

“It’s been shown that we’re finding ingredients which are most likely from flea products in our rivers.”

She recommends a conversation with your vet to decide what regime is suitable.

And while these are all important things to consider, do remember that as Felicity says, “pets enrich our lives. They give us companionship.”

Pets can also enrich our lives

“They can also encourage you to live in a more sustainable way” says Deborah, because dog owners are likely to take more walks and fewer car trips.

Hear The Big Green Money Show at 05:00 each Friday on ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 5 Live, or listen to the podcast on ´óÏó´«Ã½ Sounds. Remember to subscribe to the show so you never miss an episode.