New research from award winning pet insurance brand ManyPets, has today revealed that overweight pets could be costing the nation’s owners as much as £1,500 in vet bills per visit.
Pet obesity is on the rise in the UK and it’s hitting close to home for many pet owners. The survey of 2,000 pet owners confirmed that over half (51%) admit their pets’ weight is becoming a growing concern.
As a result, owners are having to dig deeper into their wallets, with almost a fifth (19%) admitting they are already shelling out more to tackle their pets’ fluctuating size. Claims data from ManyPets has also revealed the cost of care for conditions linked to or made worse by a pet being heavier than their ideal body weight. On average, pet parents are dishing out £682.65 for diabetes treatment for cats and dogs, whilst tackling arthritis is costing £476.61 and treatment for cruciate ligament injuries is as much as £1,578.28.
The growing obesity epidemic is no doubt linked to the soaring cost of living, with almost a quarter (22%) admitting they have been forced to make cutbacks to their pet’s overall lifestyle, while (39%) say they will only visit the vets in an emergency – all of which point to an increase in weight going unchecked.
Looking to the future, ManyPets has partnered with futurologist, Tom Cheesewright, to reveal what the future of pet health could look like as part of the ManyPets Why Weight? report – shining a light on trend-led scenarios that could exacerbate or ameliorate the problem of pet obesity. Findings include:
Metapets
“Humans are spending more and more time in the virtual world, especially for exercise. The metaverse allows us to mix the real world with the digital, so what we might see is future exercise games that include our pets, creating a space for humans and pets to enjoy exercising together. A run around the park with your dog could become a race to escape a horde of invading aliens together. Your metaverse headset can identify your dog and show you the aliens running away from Rover as he scampers across the grass.”
Communal facilities
“Part of the challenge of pet obesity is a lack of space for them to run around, and time for us to take them out. One solution might be shared facilities for our pets. Or even more shared pets. The central courtyard in a rectangular apartment block could be turned over to animals, with a reconfigurable exercise yard to keep them engaged and challenged, and a couple of different zones to separate them out: not all cats and dogs get along!”
Decamping to the country
“Housebuilders and property developers might take advantage of this desire and start to build more pet-friendly country homes. Small, but with the next must-have feature: a Pet Room. Somewhere on the ground floor that your pet can call their own, with secured access to the outside world, and plenty of comfort and indoor entertainment (though we know that even future cats will never sleep in a bed you buy for them).”
Flexitarian pets
“Exercise is a huge component of our pets’ health but we can’t ignore diet as well. There are many things we might do in the future to improve our pets’ diets, ensuring they get the nutrition they need while reducing levels of obesity. Lab grown meats might be a future low-carbon alternative that still offer pets the nutrients they need, though the price will have to fall: right now they would be an expensive way to feed a pet. But the future could see engineered foods become a cheaper and more sustainable alternative.”
Honey, I shrunk the dog
“As a general rule, big dogs need more exercise and more food. That can make it tricky to meet their exercise needs, and expensive to give them a diet of the required volume and ideal quality. If we want to reduce pet obesity, we might want to look at reducing the size of pets overall – or rather, choosing breeds with lower food and exercise requirements.”
Steven Mendel, Chief Executive and Co-founder of ManyPets, said: “At ManyPets, pet health is at the heart of everything we do. We understand it can be difficult to say no to a pet when they’re asking for more food or reward them with extra treats, but with obesity associated health problems becoming more and more prevalent, we urge pet parents to think twice to save their pets.
We’re proud to have launched our Obesity Learning Hub to offer tips and veterinary approved advice for pet parents everywhere, to gear the nation towards a brighter future for pets and help owners protect themselves from the high-costs associated with an overweight pet.”
For further information on the signs and causes of an obese pet and how to care for any overweight four legged friends visit HERE to read the latest Why Weight? report from ManyPets.
