Pets: Sales

(asked on 10th November 2014) - View Source

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if the Government will update legislation regarding the selling and breeding of pets to reflect the increased trade of pets on the internet.


Answered by
George Eustice Portrait
George Eustice
This question was answered on 17th November 2014

The existing legislation in this area provides enforcers with powers to tackle complaints about poor welfare in breeding establishments and pet shops. The existing laws on the selling of pet animals apply to the commercial selling of animals over the internet for businesses based in this country. Defra has been working with the Pet Advertising Advisory Group (PAAG) and the main internet advertising sites who have adopted minimum standards for the on-line advertising of pet animals. Since PAAG launched the minimum standards last year (which were endorsed by Defra), over 100,000 inappropriate advertisements have been removed from the internet. Defra with PAAG will continue to press other internet sites to adopt the minimum standards and some sites will go further.

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