A DISTRAUGHT dog owner has urged councils to abolish rules that mean lost pets cannot be picked up outside of office hours.

Tanya Woodcock said she endured 'hell on earth' before she could reunite with her beloved pooch Teddy, who bolted from the safety of their home to chase a cat.

The grandmother-of-three said: "I was just taking his lead off in the hallway after a walk. He saw a cat and off he shot; it was bedlam."

After hours trawling streets near her home in Abingdon's Andersey Way, Vale of White Horse District Council left a voicemail saying her five-year-old pedigree had been found just round the corner.

But Ms Woodcock slammed the council for refusing to tell her where he was being kept or release him until Monday, alleging Teddy was referred to 'like a piece of meat rather than a beloved pet'.

She added: "I frantically tried ringing back - it was hell on earth trying to get through to someone."

Eventually she was called back by a council representative who refused to reveal where Teddy had been taken, insisting she could not collect him until office hours so the council could first collect her fee.

She said: "They said there was nothing they could do. I was absolutely distraught."

After researching all day and night she discovered Teddy was at Barnewood Boarding Kennels near Bicester, and collected him from staff as soon as it opened on Sunday.

Ms Woodcock has since been invoiced for £160.50 - £144 for the council's standard reclaiming fee (or £123 for dogs found within office hours) plus £16.50 for the daily kennel charge.

Ms Woodcock said: "They seem more concerned about me paying than about my dog. I know I'm responsible and I'm happy to pay a fine, but they seem to be wanting [more] fees."

She labelled the lost dog policy 'dreadful' and said owners should at least be given the option to collect their pet before it is taken away for days.

The council's website states: "If the dog is not paid for and claimed before 4pm on a Friday, you will be charged for the weekend's kennelling costs."

Referring to any find, whether outside of office hours or not, it adds: "Even if your dog has been chipped or is wearing a tag, it will be taken to our kennels and you will be required to pay the charges."

Identical rules are in place at South Oxfordshire District Council.

David Reynolds, spokesman for the councils, said: "The policy is to ensure that a recovered dog is kept in a secure location until the owner is verified and payment for the cost of recovery has been received."