Sheffield among safest places to own a dog, beating other major cities, research finds

According to research by a dog food subscription company, Tails.com, Sheffield landed in sixth place with a score of 58.1 out of 100.

Taking a seed list of popular UK areas, the research has uncovered the safest places to own a dog, based on the following criteria: crime, dog theft, roadkill, road safety, traffic, pollution, Alabama rot, missing pets, security cameras, secure dog parks and emergency vets.

The city scored highly for the high number of security cameras, with 44,000 located within the city, 32 emergency vets available, a low pollution rate of 31.58 and no reports of roadkill within the area.

Sheffield also recorded a crime rate of 90, 12 cases of dog thefts, five cases of Alabama Rot and 77 cases of missing pets.

In comparison, York topped the charts with a score of 70.9 out of 100.

With a low road traffic score of 120, and a low crime rate of 120, the research said dog owners there could feel safer walking the streets with their furry friends in tow.

Despite having only 18 emergency vets on record, while areas such as Sunderland had 60, York still managed to remain in the lead with 28 missing pet reports and a low pollution level of 24.51.

Wolverhampton received the highest pollution score of 68.97 out of the 15 cities evaluated.

Bournemouth has the lowest number of missing dogs

The city with the lowest number of missing dogs was Bournemouth, with only 15 recorded cases. York was in second place with the second-lowest number at 28, highlighting once again why York was hailed the safest city in which to own a pooch.

The top 10 cities are: York, (70.9 per cent), Plymouth (69 per cent), Swansea (68,8 per cent) Warrington (59.2 per cent), Luton (58. per cent), Sheffield (58.1 per cent), Birmingham (56.8 per cent), Kingston-Upon-Hull (56.5 per cent), Newcastle (56.4 per cent) and Peterborough (56.1 per cent).

The bottom five consists of Wolverhampton (55.3 per cent), followed by Bournemouth (54.2 per cent), Norwich (54 per cent), Sunderland (53.8 per cent) and Cardiff with 53 per cent.

Tails.com’s head vet, Sean McCormack, said: “One of the most important things you can do to keep your dog safe is to ensure they are microchipped and are wearing a collar with your contact details on at all times. After this, it would be wise to call the microchip database and explain that your pet has gone missing so that they know to be on the lookout.

“Checking social media, like your local village Facebook group, could help to provide you with more information, as well as calling local shelters or veterinary clinics to see if any dogs have been brought in or have been contacted.

“Posters are a great way to get the community looking out for lost dogs, so aim for visible noticeboards. Failing this, it could be a possibility that your dog has been stolen, which means you need to contact the police. It could also be beneficial to share images of your pooch online, to make sure people from neighbouring towns can be on the lookout.”

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