MORE than 300 stray dogs are being picked up by local authorities off the streets of the UK, it has been revealed. And for the 11th consecutive year the number of homeless and abandoned dogs in Britain has continued on an upward spiral.

Figures released by the Stray Dogs Survey show that in 2011 126,000 can be classified stray. And that figure looks set to continue to rise as the financial pressure on families during this protracted period of economic instability continues to impact on family finances.

Many families find they can no longer afford to care for their pets and have no option but to give them up to home-finding organisation or, in an ever-increasing number of cases, just simply abandon them.