Sir John Whittingdale, MP for Maldon, pledged his support on the issue of puppy smuggling this week at a parliamentary event run by Dogs Trust, the UK’s leading dog welfare charity.
The event took place in the House of Commons on Wednesday 30 October, to encourage members of parliament to back the charity’s calls to tackle the cruel puppy smuggling trade. It comes as The Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Bill brought forward by Danny Chambers, the Liberal Democrat MP for Winchester, is due to have its 2nd reading on 29 November. Dogs Trust welcomes this Bill which aims to close some of the loopholes that allow the puppy smuggling trade to continue unabated.
This cruel trade sees dogs travelling in abhorrent conditions into the UK solely for profit, often in filthy conditions without food and water and often suffering from diseases, being heavily pregnant or puppies traveling at only a few weeks old, or dogs suffering with open wounds from unnecessary and illegal ear cropping procedures.
Sir John spoke to Dogs Trust about the charity’s pioneering Puppy Pilot scheme, which was introduced in 2015 to aid the interception of illegally imported puppies and provide care and rehabilitation for them until they find loving new homes. Since its inception, Dogs Trust has cared for over 3,000 illegally imported puppies, which, if sold to unsuspecting members of the public, would have made over £4.5 million for their illegal importers.
The charity has long been calling on the Government to introduce legislation that will tackle the puppy smuggling trade by:
1. Increasing the age at which puppies can be imported to 6 months.
2. Banning the non-commercial transport of pregnant dogs in the last 30% (more than 42 days pregnant) of their gestation period as a minimum.
3. Introducing a complete ban on the commercial movement of pregnant dogs.
4. Introducing a ban on the importation and sale of dogs with mutilations such as cropped ears and tails docked for cosmetic reasons.
5. Bringing in tougher penalties for smuggling puppies to deter deceitful sellers.
6. Reducing the number of pets that can be brought into the country via the Pet Travel Scheme to three per vehicle.
Sir John said: “I am delighted to support Dogs Trust in their mission to end puppy smuggling, and I hope to see much needed legislation to tackle this important issue which prioritises the health and welfare of dogs, and increase tougher penalties, very soon.”
Owen Sharp, CEO of Dogs Trust, said: “We are delighted to have had the opportunity to raise awareness of puppy smuggling with MPs and speak to them about how loopholes in legislation allow this awful trade to continue. We hope that with their support, these loopholes will soon be closed. At Dogs Trust we have been campaigning for over a decade to end the suffering of countless number of dogs, and we hope that with the support of MPs from across parliament, we can finally end puppy smuggling and take a real step forward for dog welfare in the UK.”
Sir John is pictured below attending the event:
To find out more about Dogs Trust’s work to end puppy smuggling visit www.dogstrust.org.uk/puppysmuggling.
