AN animal-loving mum who has been taking money-saving tips from the experts has discovered her furry friends are costing her £8,500 a year.

Now 46-year-old Jenni Cross and son Ben are to feature on TV money programme Make Me Rich, after a day-long 'financial makeover' with expert Martin Lewis, which has saved her £40,000.

The widow, from Cowl Barn Lane, Colwall, near Malvern, contacted the programme's makers, Unique Factuals, after taking voluntary redundancy in April from her job as human resources manager with Malvern-based QinetiQ.

She had worked there for 22 years and realised she needed to watch the pennies while retraining to set up her own therapy business.

Mrs Cross said: "I didn't really know where all my money was going, because as long as I was working then I didn't worry.

"This came along and I thought, 'yes, I'd rather like to be rich, that'd be wonderful', although the title's a misnomer because it reorganises your finances and finds the cheapest things."

One of the main areas where Mr Lewis found she could save cash was on the costs of looking after her animals - four horses, 11 sheep, four dogs and 18 cats in all.

Mr Lewis looked at her buying cheaper brands of pet food and not taking on more animals.

He also suggested she rent out her annexe, which she was building for her parents until her father Brian died earlier this year.

He also found her cheaper deals on her mortgage, utilities, phones and insurance, including her son's car insurance.

Mrs Cross, currently studying for a hair removal course and taking up an Indian head massage course at Worcester College of Technology in February, said: "I was grateful they came and I was able to move in the right direction and get ideas on how to save money.

"After all, it's not every day you have the chance to have a financial whizzkid in your house."

Make Me Rich starts on Monday, November 7, at 2pm and runs every weekday until Friday, November 25.