Justin with his dog Megan
Justin Tomlinson MP today welcomed the package of measures announced by the Government to help tackle the problem of irresponsible dog ownership.
Justin Tomlinson MP said “I see more and more through my casework, instances where Swindon residents and their much loved pets have been attacked by out of control dogs. Unfortunately, this is typical of what is happening up and down the country, and I welcome action by the Government to tackle the problem.
“As a local resident and dog owner myself, I’d like everyone to be able to enjoy Swindon’s fantastic open spaces. Most dog owners are responsible, but it is the few who aren’t that cause the problems. These are the people we need to target, and that is what the package aims to do.”
The main elements of the package are:
• Extending dangerous dog laws to all private property. This important change will mean that irresponsible dog owners who fail to take adequate steps to control their dogs on private land can be prosecuted. It will strike the right balance between giving greater protection to legitimate visitors to the home, such as health workers or postal workers, without penalising the owners of dogs that defend them against trespassers. We have been very clear that we will make sure that dog owners whose dog defends their owner or their family against a burglar are not penalised. The issue is one of proportionality – there is clearly a big difference between a dog defending its owner or owner’s property against a trespasser and a dog that is wildly and dangerously out of control and attacks a lawful visitor.
• Consulting on whether to micro-chip all dogs with a view to implementing the compulsory micro-chipping of newborn puppies. 58% of dog owners already have their dogs micro-chipped. Our proposals will drive up microchipping by insisting dogs are chipped at birth and subsequently updated on change of ownership. This will help tackle the problem of irresponsible owners who sometimes cannot be traced after a dog has attacked, and ease the overwhelming number of strays that are put down as the owner cannot be identified. Currently, re-homing strays that cannot be traced to owners costs local authorities and animal charities £58m every year.
• Giving the police more discretion to take common sense decisions by ending an anomaly requiring dogs be seized and kennelled, at great cost to the taxpayer and distress to the owner and dog involved, while a decision is taken on whether to exempt the dog from being destroyed under the Dangerous Dogs Act. This will mean we will strike the right balance between seizing those dogs that genuinely present a risk of public safety and dealing in a more humane and cost-efficient way with dogs that do not pose such a risk.
• Providing £50,000 for local and community projects involving animal welfare organisations, the police, local authorities and community groups to promote more responsible dog ownership in estates, youth clubs and schools.
• Providing £20,000 for the training of expert police dog legislation officers in each force.
These measures will get the right balance between targeting the minority of irresponsible dogs owners, whilst minimising additional burdens and bureaucracy for the majority of responsible dogs owners who keep their dogs under control and often already have their dogs microchipped.