CAT THEFTS SHOW WORRYING INCREASE

As Vice-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Cats, (APGOCATS), I was shocked to hear of the alarming rise in the number of cat thefts.

Cases of recorded cat theft have reached an all-time high according to data from Pet Theft Awareness. The Cat Theft report 2022 has found that, in 2021, the number of cases has increased an astonishing 40% since 2020 and quadrupled since 2015.

Current proposals across the UK for a pet abduction offence are very important as they highlight the welfare of animals and acknowledge that pets are valued as more than property.

However, it is deeply disappointing that these proposals will only extend to dogs and not cats.

90% of cat owners see their pet as part of the family; so a decision to exclude cats from any new offence is very concerning to millions of cat owners across the UK.

I will continue to support cats having parity with dogs in pet theft legislation and will continue to work with Cats Protection on this and all feline-related welfare issues.

Read the Pet Theft Awareness, Cat Theft Report 2022 here - http://pettheftawareness.blogspot.com/.../cat-theft...