Oxfordshire’s animal rescue charities have seen another dramatic rise in stray and dumped dogs, cats and other small pets.

Bosses at the Blue Cross in Burford and the Oxfordshire Animal Sanctuary in Stadhampton have blamed the continuing bleak economic picture for the rise.

Last week the Dogs Trust, which is the UK’s largest dog welfare charity, revealed that 345 stray dogs are picked up every day in the UK, an 11-year high.

But the Blue Cross centre in Shilton Road said dogs were not the only animals that were being abandoned. It has taken in 73 animals that had been found wandering the streets or abandoned so far this year, compared to 53 in the same period last year.

Alyson Jones, manager of the small animals centre in Burford, said: “Since the recession, we have seen more stray animals and this is a really serious welfare issue.

“There is never any excuse to abandon a pet. If you are struggling to cope with your animal, always contact a rescue centre like The Blue Cross.”

Hettie, a bull mastiff crossbreed, arrived in an appalling state last month after being found in Kingham. The white dog, who is thought to be about a year old, is suffering from an awful skin condition that has left her with bad sores.

Mrs Jones said: “Hettie was in a pitiful condition when she arrived and it was clear she had been left untreated for some time.

“It is tragic that loving pets like Hettie are dumped to fend for themselves. She needed urgent medical treatment and anything could have happened to her if she had not been found.”

Sara Alan-Smith, animal welfare assistant at the centre, added: “It will be a few more weeks before she is available for adoption. But she is a super dog, really likes people and always has a wagging tail.”

Staff at the Oxfordshire Animal Sanctuary in Stadhampton say the amount of abandoned dogs has remained the same over the past year. But manager Ron Heath said it now looks after 180 abandoned cats,compared to 80 last year, and more than double the amount of rabbits, up from 13 to 27.

He said people should make more effort to get their animals spayed if they did not want them to breed.

He said: “We normally only have two people looking after the cats but we have got so many now we have had to take on an extra person.

“It could be down to the recession but it doesn’t have to be expensive to get the animals spayed.”