Dogs: Electronic Training Aids

(asked on 20th May 2022) - View Source

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of dog ownership for the mental health of elderly and disabled people; and what estimate he has made of the number of physically impaired dog owners who use electronic training aids.


Answered by
Victoria Prentis Portrait
Victoria Prentis
Attorney General
This question was answered on 31st May 2022

The Government recognises the beneficial effect that pets can have on people’s emotional and mental wellbeing, including for elderly and disabled people, and appreciates that pets provided their owners with a valuable level of emotional support during the Covid-19 pandemic. We have not made a specific assessment of the potential merits of dog ownership from a mental health perspective. However, the Government remains committed to our ambitions in the NHS Long Term Plan to expand and transform mental health services in England and to invest an additional £2.3 billion a year by 2023/24.

The Government has considered evidence from Defra-funded research, the results of a public consultation, and information from other relevant sources to inform its policy on the use of e-collars for the control of dogs. The proposed ban on the use of electric shock collars controlled by hand-held devices was developed after considering a broad range of factors, including the effects of such a ban. When considered alongside the academic research, the public consultation responses, and direct engagement with the sector, the Government concluded that electric shock collars controlled by hand-held devices present a risk to the welfare of dogs and cats and that their use should not be permitted.

Concerns have been raised about the potential for a ban on the use of e-collars to adversely affect elderly dog owners, or dog owners with disabilities. We consider that e-collar users with protected characteristics, such as the elderly or those with physical impairments, would not be significantly affected by the impact of a ban because alternatives are available to assist in controlling their dogs. Further, we intend to allow time between the completion of the ban’s legislative process and its coming into force for owners to retrain their dogs.

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