London, Jan 15 (ANI): In pursuit of comfort amid the ongoing credit crunch, Japanese residents are increasingly turning to stress-relieving pet robots, which resemble real pet cats and dogs.

Made by Sega Toys Co, the Dream Pet range of robotic domestic animals is especially designed to replicate the appearance and behaviour of pet cats and dogs.

The sales of the toys rose 30 per cent between October and December last year, as compared to the same months the previous year.

Also, the robot puppy by the Japanese toy manufacturer Tomy Co saw an 80 percent boost in sales during the same period.

The puppy is so lifelike that its owners can even take it for a walk in the park.

Another pet robot seal, called Paro, designed by Japan’’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, is also getting increasingly popular in Japan.

Its creators reckon that the toy, originally designed for therapeutic use in hospitals and caring homes, is being bought as a domestic pet substitute in Japan in large numbers.

“I think those toys are popular because they are cute and can soothe people, the Telegraph quoted Hiroshi Hirano, the sale department manager at Sega Toys Co, as saying at the Toy Forum 2009 trade show in Tokyo. (ANI)