A campaign to ban commercial third-party sales of dogs from puppy farms could receive official support from Caerphilly County Borough Council.
Third-party sellers are dealers who operate as an intermediary between the breeders and the public.
Members from the council’s Health Social Care and Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee will consider a motion from Cllr Eluned Stenner on Tuesday, May 1, and make a recommendation to council to implement the ban dubbed ‘Lucy’s Law’.
“Caerphilly County Borough Council adds its support to the Lucy’s Law National Campaign to ban and outlaw third-party puppy farming,” said the cabinet member for environment and public protection and New Tredegar ward member.
“That Caerphilly County Borough Council will add its name to the growing list of supporting organisations and will proactively highlight the campaign to our residents across the county borough.
“This council requests that the leader of the council, Cllr David Poole, writes to UK Government, supporting the call for urgent action on this matter.”
The motion is supported by three fellow cabinet members: councillors Carl Cuss, Sean Morgan and Lisa Phipps.
An RSPCA Cymru spokesperson said: “The RSPCA supports a ban on third party sales of puppies, and welcomes the attention that Lucy’s Law is bringing to this important issue.
“We believe that all puppies should be born and reared in a suitable environment, where their welfare and that of their mothers is the primary consideration. They should be with their mother and should be sold directly from their place of birth.
“In Wales, the RSPCA worked hard to see the introduction of new regulations in 2014 concerning dog breeding. While not perfect, these regulations included important steps to ensure puppies are socialised; and that licensed dog breeders only sell puppies they have bred themselves.
“Sadly, RSPCA Cymru sees the heartbreaking victims of the cruel illegal puppy trade on an all too regular basis.
“We would urge anyone thinking of taking on a dog to consider adopting a rescue animal instead of buying a puppy. If someone is set on buying a pup, we would encourage them to use RSPCA guidance to help them find a happy, healthy dog.”
In the UK, commercial third-party sellers must be licensed as a pet shop in accordance with the Pet Animals Act 1951.
New rules were published by the UK Government earlier this year concerning England, but the law is slightly different in Wales.
Although pet shops are covered by the same act, devolved legislation covers dog breeders – the Animal Welfare (Breeders of Dogs) (Wales) Regulations 2014.
The Welsh Government is monitoring developments over the border, while expressing general support for a third-party sellers ban.
The Lucy’s Law campaign was established in 2017 and is supported by the All-Party Parliamentary Dog Advisory Welfare Group (APDAWG), chair by the SNP MP Dr Lisa Cameron.
It is named after Lucy, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, who was rescued from a Welsh rescue centre after spending a number of years on a puppy farm.
A petition linked to Lucy’s Law, which has received 121,256 at the time of publication, will be discussed in Parliament next month.