Image caption, Vicky Bye said pet food banks were a vital safety net for owners
ByHarriet Robinson, Reporting fromWiltshire and Sarah Jones, West of England- Published55 minutes ago
The manager of a food bank says donations of pet food have dipped over the summer and some owners are choosing to feed their animals before themselves.
Salisbury Foodbank in Wiltshire said it was was running low on dog and cat food and would take "everything and anything" which people could donate.
Pet owner Vicky Bye said her local pet food bank helped her get back on her feet after unexpected hard times. She is now fundraising and giving back to the food bank which helped her.
"It was either feed my animals, pay my electric bill or feed myself," she said.
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Bye - who has a six-year-old dalmatian, two springer spaniels and a cat - said her family were "financially stable" when they got their pets but a year later were in "dire straits".
"My husband was promised work - payment stopped for the work and we were literally living off peanuts and I just remember crying," she said.
"But it was thanks to the pet food bank I was able to keep my dogs and we got through that sticky patch and got back on our feet," Bye added.
Although she is now in a better position, she said she did not take it for granted.
"I may be plodding along financially secure at the minute but next week - if my husband loses his job or I end up in hospital - you never know what's around the corner," she said.
Image caption, Hayley Crymble said Bath Cats and Dogs Home had also experienced a rise in animals being donated
Foodbank manager Maria Stevenson said pet food was an add-on service at Salisbury Foodbank, but she often saw "older clientele" putting their pets' needs before themselves.
"It's really important to make sure each family member receives some food," she said.
Bath Cats and Dogs Home, which gives its surplus pet food to food banks, said it had also seen a drop in donations of dog food.
Hayley Crymble, education and outreach manager at the home, said: "We're definitely seeing the results of the financial crises and the cost of living crises in the donations that we receive.
"Dog food is more expensive and for supporters when they're in supermarkets and they're maybe considering what they can afford to donate.
"A box of 40 cat food pouches is tangibly more than one bag of dog food - which might cost the same amount - so they tend to go for that," she added.
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