ANIMAL welfare groups have criticised the trend to dress up pets for Hallowe’en.

Spooky fashions for cats and dogs have been flying off the shelves of Internet stores for the past few weeks.

Among the most popular has been this pumpkin costume which gets your pet in the Hallowe’en spirit.

The outfit has been so popular that store Canineandco.co.uk reported that the dog owners have been ordering in their droves and it has sold out.

Manager Donna Condlife, said: “We underestimated how popular they would be.

"People want to dress up their pets so they can join in the fun in Hallowe’en, especially if they have children and they go out Trick or Treating they want their pets to come along too.”

She added that one of the reasons the outfits are so popular is due to their unrestricted movement.

However animal welfare experts have called on owners to cast off the costumes.

A spokesman for the RSPCA, said: “Dressing up animals has the potential to cause significant stress and the RSPCA advises against it.

“Most animals object to the restrictions which may be caused by anything put on them – think how a puppy or kitten reacts to a collar when its first used.”