Carmarthenshire County Council congratulated on handling of illegal dog breeding

DELYTH Jewell MS highlighted action taken by Plaid Cymru Sir Gar to address the breeding of illegal dogs and called on other councils to follow their lead.

Delyth Jewell MS, Plaid Cymru Deputy Senedd Leader said,

“I’d like to congratulate Carmarthenshire County Council for the work that they’ve done on this issue. They announced a review of the breeding of illegal dogs in the area by the council cabinet, and I understand that they are the first local authority in Wales to do this, so all praise is due to them.

“Research from RSPCA Cymru shows that Caerphilly council received the third highest number of enquiries into dog breeding in 2022, and Carmarthenshire and Cardiff councils received yet more.

“Now, while the majority of investigations into these enquiries resulted in no further action, six resulted in formal action and two prosecutions were also undertaken. Caerphilly is the only local authority to have undertaken prosecutions relevant to illegal dog breeding, aside from Carmarthenshire, in 2022.

“I do commend them for the work that they’ve done. Of course, there have been a number of fatalities in recent years in the area.”

Rural Affairs Minister Lesley Griffiths replied in the Senedd:

“Our capacity to investigate and stop illegal breeding has increased significantly over recent years as a direct result of the Welsh Government-funded local authority enforcement project. Officials meet regularly with Animal Licensing Wales to discuss progress.

“And I think it is really important that every local authority has the opportunity to undertake the inspections at dog breeding premises. And I think those visits, in particular, have led to a big change at the premises that have been visited. The teams led operations at ports across Wales, because I think that will really help with our local authorities as well. So, I am very keen that we continue the project. Obviously, I’m looking at what more we can do. You mentioned, sadly, the fatalities that we’ve seen in Caerphilly. You’ll be aware I had the responsible dog ownership summit. I’m very keen to have a further one next year, because, whilst we haven’t got all the levers, it’s really important that we use the ones we do have in Wales.”

Billie-Jade Thomas, RSPCA Cymru’s senior public affairs manager, said: “RSPCA Cymru has long been concerned about the extent of illegal dog breeding in Wales, as this unethical practice can have significant consequences for animal welfare. While the growing number of enquiries submitted to Wales’ local authorities suggest that the public are vigilant about illegal dog breeding, they also remind us of the scale of this ongoing problem. As part of our mission to create a better world for every animal, we encourage all of Wales’ councils to follow in the footsteps of Carmarthenshire, and look to tackle the serious welfare issues associated with the unlicensed breeding of puppies for profit.”