In brief...: Dog care bills soar higher

Oct 19 2007

One in five dog owners who have taken their pet to the vet have had to raid their savings in order to pay the bill, a survey has found.

Britain's 11 million dog owners fork out around £1.5billion a year in vets' fees, spending an average of £215 each on their pet every five years, according to insurer Direct Line. Just over half of owners do not have insurance in place to cover trips to the vet, with one in 10 instead admitting they have put off paying household bills to meet the costs.