USPCA demands transparency on dog breeding facility from Council

The Chief Executive of the Ulster Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (USPCA) requested details of the next inspection of a dog breeding site and has spoken out about the organisation's deep concerns regarding licensed dog breeding premises in Fermanagh, and a lack of transparency from the Council.

Nora Smith, Chief Executive of the USPCA - the world’s second-oldest animal welfare charity - is calling for greater transparency regarding the dog breeding practices in the licenced breeding premises in Clabby. She has spoken to this newspaper as her organisation’s request to the Council for information at three licensed breeding establishments was withheld due to “commercial interests of third parties”.

The queries related to The UK Dog Breeding Academy, operated by David and Jonathan Hamilton, once known as Furnish Kennels, and two businesses also registered at the same address: Kelly’s Kennels, and Douglas Hall Kennels.

In a letter obtained by The Impartial Reporter, in response to the USPCA's request to record and share records of the next inspection of the premises located at the Clabby Road, Fermanagh and Omagh District Council replied: "The Council considers that the information you have requested is exempt from disclosure under Section 43(2) of the Freedom of Information Act, 2000 [which] exempts information where disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of any legal person (an individual, a company, the public authority itself or any other legal entity).

"When considering the public interest, [Council] Officers recognised that there is a legitimate public interest in ensuring the openness and transparency of Council business; however, they are also found that there is a strong and countervailing public interest in protecting the commercial interests of third parties.

“Officers concluded on balance there is no public interest in disclosure. Officers are therefore applying for exemption S43(2) to this part of the request."

Ms. Smith said: “We are disappointed by the Council’s decision to use commercial confidentiality as a reason to withhold crucial information that directly impacts animal welfare.”

“This response prevents the USPCA from carrying out its charitable mission of advancing the welfare of animals, and raises serious questions about the transparency of the inspection process and the regulation of dog breeding establishments,” she claimed.

The USPCA posed a series of questions to the Council including:

• The number of staff employed at the establishment and the staff-to-dog ratio;

• The qualifications and experience of staff;

• The length of time breeding bitches and studs are kept on the premises;

• The number of puppies born and sold annually;

• The provision of health checks for both dogs and puppies;

• The age at which puppies are separated from their mothers; and

• The interval between pregnancies for female dogs.

In a letter sent on August 29 to Alison McCullagh, Chief Executive of the Council, following a meeting in July 2023, the USPCA Chief Executive wrote: “I want to take this opportunity to follow up regarding our correspondence and meeting last year relating to the Hamilton Breeding Establishment.

“We want to put on record our serious concerns about this business and the Council’s responses.” Ms. Smith noted in her letter that “the answers received do not address our underlying concerns”.

She said: “It is our view that breeding on this industrial scale calls into question the provision of minimum welfare standards and whether the dogs and pups are being kept in conditions that meet the five freedoms as outlined in the Animal Welfare Act (2011). “It also raises concerns about the minimum standards required by the 2013 Dog Breeding Establishments’ regulations with regard [to] behaviour, socialisation and enrichment.”

The responses received by the USPCA from the Council on September 26 did not offer any information on conditions at the breeding establishment.

Instead, answers included, “The Council does not hold records in this regard”, and “Records are held at individual locations and inspected during site investigation visits”.

Speaking to The Impartial Reporter, Ms. Smith said: “We all feel passionately about animal welfare. When you've got an operation working on this size and scale, these are really basic questions about staff ratios.

“It's about the number of puppies that are born annually. It's about the health checks, and how well these animals are looked after in that setting.”

Making a case for the Council to answer these questions as a matter of public interest, Ms. Smith said: “These are legitimate questions that are absolutely within the public interest, that are not being answered.”

When asked by this newspaper if a more detailed response to their questions would help alleviate some of the concerns of the USPCA, Ms. Smith said: “It would help, but fundamentally, it [the site] raises some big questions around when or how did we move to industrialised dog breeding.

“Dog breeding establishments in Northern Ireland are bigger than some farms. They're bigger than most farms in Northern Ireland, so we're treating our dogs like livestock,” she claimed.

"The establishments that the UPSCA have addressed are legal and licensed establishments which operate within the current law.

"The USPCA believe that there is an opportunity to re-examine the current laws and legislation surrounding animal welfare."

Ms. Smith said: “I think there's an opportunity to revisit animal welfare legislation on a range of different points. But in addition to revising existing legislation, we also need to bring in new legislation.

“The Minister [of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Andrew Muir] is talking about bringing in a third-party ban on puppies and kittens.

“Similar legislation had come in across the water a number of years ago, so that would be absolutely welcome. But alongside that, what we're calling for is a central register of breeders.”

Describing how such a register would work, she said it would be “a publicly accessible register, so you're able to see if you're buying a dog or a pup from a licensed breeder”.

Ms. Smith continued: “[There’d be] more information available in relation to the size and scale of that operation.

“Ideally, what we'd like to see is a star rating, in terms of the welfare standards at their particular businesses, so that members of the public will be able to buy their dogs and their puppies responsibly.

“If you're going to bring a dog into your life, obviously our first preference would be that you would adopt rather than buy, but for those who do buy, it's about making sure you're working with a breeder that ultimately puts the welfare of the animal front and centre.

“For that to happen, we need to shift the scales so that we're looking at low-volume, high-welfare [breeding and sales].

“Currently … with large-scale breeding establishments, [there is] little to no information in relation to their inspection regimes,” added Ms. Smith.

The Impartial Reporter contacted Fermanagh and Omagh District Council in relation to the issues raised by Ms. Smith and the USPCA.

The Council was asked to clarify how Section 43(2) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 applies in this case and explain why commercial interests are prioritized over the public interest in animal welfare transparency?

A spokeswoman said: "The Council has no additional comments beyond the response provided to the USPCA. "

The Impartial Reporter asked the Council, what steps are being taken by the Council to improve transparency and address public and animal welfare organizations’ concerns regarding dog breeding operations.

A spokeswoman deferred legislative responsibility to The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA)  and added that "Fermanagh and Omagh District Council is unable to comment on individual dog breeding licence holders. 

"Fermanagh and Omagh District Council is committed to ensuring that all our work is carried out professionally and in compliance with all relevant legislation. The Council is a fully accountable public body whose decision making is thorough, open and transparent."

David and Jonathan Hamilton of the U.K. Dog Breeding Academy were contacted for comment but had not responded at the time of going to press.