Sales of pet-related Christmas products at Waitrose have increased 964 per cent compared to the same time last year.

The supermarket said that in the past 30 days, visits to the mince pies for dogs page on the website has seen a 241 per cent uptick, while searches for “dog Christmas” have risen by 114 per cent over the past week.

Sales of Christmas themed dog dinners have also increased, with some products seeing a jump of as much as 343 per cent.

Sales of certain dog toys at John Lewis have also increased by almost 100 per cent.

“This Christmas, our customers are looking to share the love with their pets, embracing them as key members of family households,” said Nicki Hobbs buyer pet food and pet care. “This is why we’re driving category growth this Christmas, launching two new festive products including our Paw-some Mince Pies and Waitrose Crunchy Christmas mix for Cats, as well as bringing back our popular Waitrose Christmas Meaty strips for dogs, giving customers the perfect way to pamper their pets.”

In October, the John Lewis Partnership announced that it was recruiting for 12,500 temporary roles to cover increased demand over the festive season. The retailer said this is an increase of around 4,100 roles compared to last year.

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