Almost £140,000 has been spent on bringing 35 pets belonging to Ukrainian refugees into Northern Ireland since the conflict with Russia began.
More than 3,000 Ukranian people settled in the north over the past two years following the invasion started in February 2022.
New figures show that their some pets have been transported to join their owners in Northern Ireland under the Ukrainian Pet Scheme.
The Belfast Telegraph has reported that figures show that just under £137,00 has been spent bringing pets from Ukraine to Northern Ireland.
The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera) confirmed that the money was spent bringing a total of 35 pets as part of the overall UK scheme.
The cost of the bill has been paid by the UK government department, the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA).
“Thirty-five pets have entered Northern Ireland (since) 2022 under the Ukrainian Pet Scheme,” a Daera spokesperson said.
“These pets were housed at an approved quarantine establishment (AQE) until conditions were met for entry into Northern Ireland from an unlisted country as detailed under the EU Pet Travel regulation (Regulation EU 576/2013).
“The cost of invoices received by the AQE was £136,648.87.
“Please note these costs were met in full by UK government department APHA and, as such, payments totalling £136,648.87 have been recovered.”
Other figures from the Irish Star reveal that more than €1 million per month is being spent by the Irish government on accommodation for the pets of Ukrainian refugees.
More than 1,800 cats, dogs and other animals are being housed in hotels and other state-funded accommodation at a cost of around €20 per night, per pet.
