23/09/2009

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Professor Patrick Bateson, chairman of the Kennel Club/Dogs Trust funded enquiry into implementing legislation regarding the breeding of dogs, has said that it is unlikely that the UK will see new legislation. Instead it will be more likely that new codes of practice will be attached to the existing law and this should result in more prosecutions against unscrupulous breeders.

He said “I don’t think it is likely we will get legislation in the UK which could change the whole scene, but we can recommend changes in codes of practice which could be embodied within existing legislation”.

When asked what recommendations were likely he responded that it was too early to say but that the various bodies concerned with the welfare of dogs and their breeding should get together and talk about the best way forward and consider other points of view.

When asked whether he would look at the revised breed standards he said he thought they were too “vague” and that very often they were not good enough to protect the breed against serious consequences of inbreeding. Professor Bateson also said he was concerned about puppy farms saying “If the public starts to insist that they have to know the pedigree of the dog and that it has been properly looked after and socialised they should have a pet for life”

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