Letchworth woman fights to keep 200 guinea pigs

Mrs Evans said her home has become a "dumping ground for their unwanted animals"

A woman is fighting to keep her 200 guinea pigs after she was told they must all be rehomed.

Jane Evans from Letchworth, Hertfordshire, claims Settle Housing Association has wrongly blamed the pets for an issue with rats in the area.

She said her hobby was "her life" and removing the guinea pigs could "destroy" it.

The housing association said it wanted to work with Mrs Evans to "carefully find the best way forward".

Jane Evans said guinea pigs were her hobby and removing them would "destroy her life"

Mrs Evans, who travels the country showing "elite" guinea pigs, started looking after unwanted pets five years ago and now has more than 200.

"Because we keep very high standards, we have become everyone's dumping ground for their unwanted animals," she said.

'Detrimental effect'

Settle said it told her in May 2018 her garden must be cleared but the conditions were now "the same if not worse".

It said all the animals must go by 20 February.

"That's something that's going to actually destroy myself, my family [and] my hobby," Mrs Evans said.

"My life will just be destroyed because I'll have nothing to get up for, nothing to live for.

"It will have a detrimental effect on the whole family because people won't be coping mentally and physically, it could end up destroying a marriage."

Mrs Evans said she feared up to 100 of the older ones may have to be put down.

She said the animals' waste did not attract rats and any seen were due to other rubbish in the area.

A petition in support of her has reached nearly 1,000 signatures.

A spokesman for the housing association said it wanted to work with Mrs Evans to "find a solution that works for everyone, including neighbouring properties and environmental health".

"We will continue to work closely with Mrs Evans and provide all the support we can as we carefully find the best way forward," a statement said.