Winter, the economy and its effects on animal welfare.

As winter hits with full force and we start to feel the need to heat our homes, due to the current economic climate and the daily struggles some of us face, some people are trying to save money wherever possible. Unfortunately in some cases this means people are turning to switching the heat and lighting sources off for their exotic pets to try and bring those energy bills down, this is very dangerous for your pet and in this article I will try to point out the reasons why and show that it is just not worth it.

Many exotic pets, mainly reptiles such as corn snakes and bearded dragons, are heavily reliant on the external heat sources we provide for them, they come from hot climates and are cold blooded meaning they cannot regulate their own body heat, without these heat sources their bodies just do not operate properly and this can cause serious illness or even death. If your animal is set up correctly and your heat source is thermostatically controlled the actual cost of heating your animals enclosure can be as little as 6 pence per day or £1.86 a month, as I’m sure you can agree to put your animals health at risk for such a low amount of money really isn’t worth it.

Some animals also need an external UV light source again which costs pennies a day to run, without this they can get very serious health complications such as metabolic bone disease, an agonisingly painful disease that can reduce your animals quality of life drastically or even prove to be fatal.

At this time of year the pressure is also heaped upon rescues as people are forced to make the decision to give up their animals because they believe the cost of keeping them is too much to cope with. It is at times like this that rescues need your support,the cost of supporting the extra animals taken in can sometimes make the strain of funding that little harder, even a small donation can go a long long way.

So please if you are considering giving up your animal this winter because you think that the cost of keeping them is too much to bear, consider the actual savings you will gain, against the hurt you will feel at having to rehome your beloved pet. I’m sure we can all agree, it just isn’t worth it.

If you would like to rehome or donate to A.P.E.S. please contact the centre or click on the links on the website.

Thank you for reading.