A coalition of leading organisations representing dog welfare including Veterinary Ireland which is the representative body for vets along with the Irish Kennel Club and animal welfare groups including the ISPCA, DSPCA, Irish Blue Cross and Dogs Trust joined together recently to issue a statement welcoming the introduction of the Dog Breeding Bill which will lead to the safeguarding of key aspects of animal health and welfare.
The new legislation set up to clamp down on illegal puppy farms and allow inspectors to prosecute unscrupulous breeders who keep their animals in unhygienic conditions.
Joe Collins, President of Veterinary Ireland, says that his organisation has for many years been calling for legislation to control dog breeding, and especially the so-called “puppy farms”. According to Mr Collins, “Ireland has become known as the “puppy farm capital of Europe”, exporting tens of thousands of puppies annually to the United Kingdom and Europe, where the breeding of dogs is now well regulated. The unregulated Irish trade contributes to an animal welfare nightmare for the RSPCA and other dog charities in the UK.
Licensing and monitoring of the industry in Ireland is long overdue, to ensure that animal welfare standards are improved and to restore Ireland’s international reputation in this area”.
The legislation will limit its impact to breeders with six or more female dogs with breeding potential. Individuals who breed a small number of dogs as a hobby or small enterprise will not come under the remit of the Bill. “Additionally” states Mr Collins, “the new regulations will not be draconian, and those breeders who are already keeping dogs in reasonable living conditions, with adequate attention to the animals’ health and welfare needs, will have nothing to fear from their implementation”.
Sean Delmar, of the Irish Kennel Club also voiced his approval “the proposed legislation has been drafted following extensive consultation and submissions from all interested parties, including the large scale dog breeders. The Irish Kennel Club has always insisted on its members abiding by our code of ethics for breeding and we were happy to be part of the process which contains many of our proposals. We have made a few suggestions for minor adjustments to some of the detail in the bill, in the belief that these will strengthen the overall aim which is to improve animal welfare.”
Animal welfare groups like the ISPCA, DSPCA, Irish Blue Cross and Dogs Trust also recently issued their own commentary supporting the Dog Breeding legislation.
The main aim of the Breeding Establishments Bill is to regulate and safeguard the welfare of dogs and to protect the public and the group believes no organisation or group should be above regulation and inspection under the terms of the Bill and they are calling for the Government to stand firm on this issue to safeguard animal welfare.