Interview with Jan Ryan, pet food bank volunteer

I meet Jan Ryan in her house in Bournemouth, with her beloved dog Dazzle. She tells me about the pet food bank and how it has proven to be successful for people struggling. She wonders about how families are coping with the rise in costs.

"If people are struggling to feed themselves, how they're going to manage to feed their pets? And we know that lots of pets have been surrendered to the shelters, which are now overflowing because the owners can't feed them," she says.

Jan has been a volunteer for Dorset Dogs community interest company (CIC) since before the pet food bank was created. She enjoys seeing how well it is run.

"The volunteers who run the food banks in partnership with us are amazing. They're so cheerful. They manage it all absolutely amazing," she explains.

For her it makes her upset seeing how many people are surrendering their pets. The pet food bank was set up as a remedy to this, as the CIC noticed posts of people looking for new homes for their pets, on its Facebook group: Dog Friendly Dorset.

Jan says: "I know that people are surrendering them and their hearts must be breaking."

Dazzle is Jan's dog and is very important to her. She understands the meaning of pets to a person, and how they need to be loved and looked after.

"I just think they're important as sentient beings. They need to be looked after," she says.

Jan Ryan with her dog, Dazzle, holding up a treat. (Sourced by Daisy Pearce)