WITH Forest dog rehoming centres at

capacity and cat refuges packed with unwanted cats and kittens, animal lovers in the Dean say they have reached crisis point.

Horses, ponies and rabbits also join a long list of abandoned animals, some like sweet kitten Betty (pictured) just put out into the woods to fend for themselves – which means terrible death from starvation and attacks from predators.

And one after another, the rescue agencies say they simply cannot take any more victims.

All mainly blame the current financial situation, which has left hundreds of people unable to afford the costs of keeping a pet.

"Rescue services are in meltdown. I just don't know what to tell people who have a pet they say they can't keep. The dog pounds are full. With pony and rabbit rescuers it's just the same," said Forest dog-rehomer Helen Szuluk.

"But the phone never stops ringing. For the first time ever I can't even find homes for puppies."

Neutering and a clampdown on commercial dog breeding might help but in some cases the choice was a bleak one – animals had to be put down.

However Forest Cats Protection – about to celebrate its 20th anniversary – says it still will not have any cat or kitten destroyed despite taking in record numbers with little prospect of rehoming them.

Spokesman Sara Ford, who is looking after Betty, one of four kittens (three still missing presumed dead) thrown from a car at Cannop Crossroads, says Cats Protection will always help with neutering costs, the best way of avoiding having unwanted animals.

Some are not so lucky as Betty – only last week a Chaxhill reader sent the Review a picture of dead kittens dumped on the pavement that was too gruesome to print.

The horse, pony and donkey rescue organisation HAPPA, with a centre at Brockweir, says it has no spare capacity for unwanted animals.

"We have noticed a 30 per cent increase in complaints of cruelty and neglect over the past two years," a spokesman told the Review. "We have also seen an overwhelming rise – 40 per cent in the past year – in the number of people who no longer wish to or can't afford to keep their animals."

Hay prices have more than doubled in two years and bedding has gone up 50 per cent in 12 months. The spokesman urged horse owners to club together to buy in bulk to help keep costs down.

•See Letters.