Man's best friend bitten by economy

Battersea dogs and cats home in south London has seen an increase in the number of stray animals, and they're putting it down to the credit crunch.

Christmas is usually a busy time at the Battersea dogs and cats home, but this year the animal refuge has taken in 6.430 stray dogs this year, 1,000 more than this time in 2007. Workers at the centre say that due to the financial climate, pet owners are no longer able to afford the upkeep of their animals, and are being forced to leave them on the streets.

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Alfie is five months old.

He is among hundreds of puppies and dogs that are brought here -- the Battersea dogs and cats home.

The centre has been running for more than a century taking in strays and finding new homes for them.

Some reasons that people give for not wanting their pet is that it doesn't match the sofa or the new white carpet, that's according to The Dog Trust a group that promotes the welfare of dogs.

This year the number of pets that have been abandoned has increased, and chief executive Jan Barlow says their reasons are linked to the credit crunch.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) BARLOW SAYING:

"This year we have seen an increase of about a thousand dogs coming in as strays, and that's obviously a high proportion when you think that we only taking 8,000 normally in total anyway, and we think this is due to two reasons. Firstly it may be due to the credit crunch, and people's financial situation meaning that they can't actually keep those animals any longer and they have taken a decision to actually put them out on the street. But the other reason is there was a change in the law earlier this year which meant that responsibility for stray dog moved from the police to local authorities".

Cats are also cared for here, and the refuge is currently home to more than 100 felines.

Barlow is worried the number may increase and is urging people to think twice about getting a pet.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) BARLOW SAYING:

"I think we're more worried that people will be abandoning their dogs on the streets and that's obviously one of the things that we are worried about with the increase that we have seen this year. So what we are really urging people to do is firstly don't take on a pet at this point if you think, you know, there may be financial difficulties for you".

For Leonard his Christmas wish has been answered.

He spent three months at the home, he'll now be spending the festive season with a family having found a new home.