Saturday 24 September 2011

Death Row Dog Lennox Update

The World is Watching:

The legal appeal hearing for Lennox (see our previous article here) held under breed specific legislation in Northern Ireland went ahead at the Laganside court house in Belfast as scheduled on Friday 23rd September.

This was the second day in court on the appeal hearing sitting before Judge Derek Rodgers, proceedings again ran all day with no final decision given.

Whilst Lennox was on trial the petition in support of him crashed through the 100,000 mark, with a colossal 100,361 signatures reached on that very morning as his trial began.

All eyes are literally watching from across the globe as thousands of people follow the whole sorry saga in total dismay, watched through network & Internet sites and determined to help in any way they can.

A legal verdict awaits for a pet dog who has never put a paw wrong under a law which reads like something from the dark ages. In the meantime the petition launched to save him continues to grow as it is circulates around the world.

You can show your support and add your signature here; it will only take a few seconds of your time.

The court has decided it will give its Judgement in seven days time on the morning of Friday 30th September.

Wednesday 21 September 2011

Campaign to End BSL - DEFRA

Breed Specific Legislation - Contacting Defra:


Please voice your concerns over breed specific legislation, e.g. Section 1 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 as amended and applied to England, Scotland and Wales.


Please write to the department for the environment, food and rural affairs - Defra the Government department concerned with animal welfare and 'dangerous dog' issues.


Lord Taylor, Parliamentary under-Secretary of State was appointed on 16th September 2011 taking over responsibility from Lord Henley, his portfolio includes the issues of animal welfare, companion animals and dangerous dogs.

Breed bans do not help protect the public. If you agree we need a total repeal and nothing less, you can use the template letter to send to Defra or use it to help you write your own letter-letters don't have to be long and complicated, you can give as much or as little detail as you feel you would like to include. Do ask for a reply.

It is very important that our politicians and government receive letters from you concerning breed specific legislation (BSL) and its failure. Laws are changed through parliamentary process, which includes a lot of discussion and debate on the issue.

Please post you letter to:

Lord Taylor Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
Defra
Nobel House
17 Smith Square
London SW1P 3TR

Emails to government ministers are sent to:


Please Speak Out & Help End BSL

Monday 19 September 2011

Lennox Update

The legal appeal hearing went ahead on Friday 16th September as listed at the Laganside court in Northern Ireland, the court ran out of time on the day and the hearing was scheduled to continue into a 2nd day on 23rd September

Lennox remains held in kennels appointed by the council, away from his family.

There are currently over 89,000 signatures supporting the release of Lennox. Please continue to share the petition with all your contacts, family and friends:

Saturday 10 September 2011

Campaign To End BSL - Your MP

Breed Specific Legislation - Contacting your MP:

Please voice your concerns over breed specific legislation, e.g. Section 1 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 as amended and applied to England, Scotland and Wales.
Breed bans do not help protect the public. If you agree we need a total repeal and nothing less, you can use our template letter.

It is very important that our politicians receive letters from you concerning breed specific legislation (BSL) and its failure. Laws are changed through parliamentary process, which includes a lot of discussion and debate on the issue.

Please write to your own MP- there to represent you and listen to your concerns. To locate your Member of Parliament (MP) please click here.

You can use the template letter here for ideas
  print/post or email it to your MP


Please Speak Out & Help End BSL


Friday 9 September 2011

UK Stray Dog Number Hits Eleven Year High

Indicating One Dog Every Hour Losing Its Life:

The 2011 annual Stray Dog Survey released today by Dogs Trust, the UK’s largest dog welfare charity, reveals the UK’s stray and abandoned dog numbers are at an 11 year high with over 126,176 dogs being picked up by Local Authorities over the last 12 months, an increase of 4% on the previous year which equates to 345 stray dogs being found every day.

Sadly over 6% (7,121) of these strays were put to sleep in the last year by Local Authorities for want of a home which represents an11% increase on the previous year.

These results indicate that 20 dogs are put to sleep somewhere in the UK each day, nearly one dog an hour.

The 15th annual Stray Dog Survey, conducted by GfK NOP on behalf of Dogs Trust, also revealed a large number of dogs were rejected by their owners who refused to claim them once found and identified by local dog wardens. This new trend is worrying as it appears some dog owners no longer view their pet as a valued family member or have not considered the true cost and responsibility involved with owning a dog.

Dogs Trust Chief Executive, Clarissa Baldwin OBE, comments:

“This year’s Stray Dog Survey is not good news for the nation’s dogs. Not only has there been an increase in the number of strays but the sheer volume of dogs being destroyed – 20 a day – is horrendous.
A combination of factors has led to this increase such as a high number of unwanted bull breeds, the economic climate meaning some people can no longer afford to have a dog, and a worrying increase in owners 'disposing' of their dogs when they no longer want them.
We work very closely with the Local Authorities who do their best in a very difficult economic climate. They do not want to put dogs to sleep but they are struggling to cope with such huge numbers of strays and a changing attitude to dog ownership.”

The number of stray dogs reunited with their owner due to a microchip has fallen by 4% to 31%, whilst collar and tag based reunites are at their lowest level ever with just 6% being reunited this way.

This highlights the importance of compulsory microchipping, which Dogs Trust continues to campaign for and most dog wardens regard as an essential step to ensure stray figures do not continue to rise.

Dogs Trust research reveals that if Government were to introduce compulsory microchipping it could save the public purse between £20.5 and £22.8 million per year.

To incentivise the Government, Dogs Trust will be offering free microchipping at all 17 UK Rehoming Centres

Despite this year’s shocking Stray Dog Survey results, the general public seem unaware of the real state of the nation’s dogs with a recent YouGov survey* revealing that nearly all - over 94% - of the public either underestimated or had no idea how many stray dogs there are in the UK.

Over 56% of those questioned also did not know how many dogs are put to sleep each year because they cannot be rehomed.

*YouGov Plc Survey Total sample size was 4347 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 22nd - 25th August 2011. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all UK adults (aged 18+).

    Wednesday 7 September 2011

    Pet Dog Lennox - court hearing due:


    Innocent Dog Caught In Legal Nightmare:

    There is a court hearing scheduled for Lennox at 10.30am on 16th September 2011 at the Langanside Courthouse, Belfast; this is the appeal against the death sentence (not conviction) which was ordered by Judge Nixon at the last court hearing in March 2011.
    Lennox is a five year old crossbreed dog who was seized on 19th May 2010 from his family home in Belfast Northern Ireland. He remains held on ‘canine death row’, under sentence to be destroyed, whilst legal proceedings are on-going.

    Lennox was taken under breed specific legislation (BSL) which has been in force in Northern Ireland since introduced in 1991 and amended in 2001. This is separate law (although similar) to that in England, Scotland & Wales.
    Lennox had never put a paw wrong, he is held for his appearance - for looking like a prohibited type of dog. Read more here

    Lennox was neutered, licensed (dog licence in NI) for the past 5 years of his life, micro-chipped, insured, DNA registered & pet safe registered. He currently awaits his fate held by Belfast City Council (the councils implement this law in NI); he has been separated from his family who have no access to him.
    There has been new legislation recently passed and now fully approved in Northern Ireland which will amend, clarify & introduce new measures:

    The Dogs (Amendment) Act Northern Ireland 2010 passed its final stage in the NI Assembly on 8th February. DARD have confirmed to us that it received Royal Assent on March 8th 2011 and that different sections will commence at different times.

    Of relevance here is that Sections 5 and 9 relate to prohibited types of dogs clarifying discretion when sentencing & exemption on both conviction and non-conviction cases.
    Previous to this, the NI legislation had been amended in 2001, but there seems to have been no cases of dogs being ordered 'exempted' as an alternative to destruction, this is thought to have been down to an 'anomaly' in the amendment, which gave discretion to the courts when sentencing but did not directly appear to link this discretion to the exemption process on conviction cases.

    It is now clear and has been confirmed that the courts do have the power to order exemption of a dog as an alternative to destruction on conviction (when found guilty of being a prohibited type of dog-as in the case of Lennox).
    The process of exemption would be carried out by the local council as opposed to a central registry-as it is in England, Scotland and Wales (the Index of Exempted Dogs now run by Defra).
    Lennox is one of many dogs seized and held in NI, now that the legislation has been ‘clarified’ there is new hope that these dogs can be ordered exempted as opposed to a court destruction order, as is currently the case in the rest of the UK; allowing pets to live until a time when failed breed specific legislation can be completely repealed and replaced with laws which apply equally to all types of dogs and focus on the real problem - irresponsible people.

    Lennox's family have been extremely brave and endured a lot of stress and anguish as they have battled on to save their dog's life with the full weight of criminal law thrown against them putting them in an seemingly impossible position. 

    Lennox their pet which lets not forget, had lived happily and without incident for five years, licensed as all dogs are in NI and responsible owned, is kept confined in a concrete cell with just his memories of a life he once knew, whilst the legal wheels move painstakingly slowly.

    All the time Lennox is unaware he has support from across the globe as it swells behind him & all eyes are following the case, with one common aim to release his chains, to let him live, to bring him home & plough the way for others to follow; the names you don't hear about, the other victims of outdated draconian law labelled, isolated & lined up for the killing.

    The case of Lennox has yet again highlighted the real-life workings of breed specific law and the cruel way in which the law allows dogs to be taken from their family homes and put on a death trial with a tape measure.

    Lennox isn't the only dog held in NI and across the rest of the UK, but he is a light in the dark for many, with no exemptions ordered since the law was amended in NI ten years ago how many pets have tragically lost their lives behind closed doors?

    When we supported the case of 'Bruce' another pet dog also taken under the same piece of law the widespread confusion uncovered surrounding the NI Amendment and workings of the ban in NI was astounding see here.

    In our opinion, a dog has to be the first dog to get through the exemption process, if one can win through, more can follow the same legal route and be spared from the death sentence.

    Exemption isn't the solution for flawed law, but for those dogs caught up in a legal nightmare it gives them a chance to live, to be returned to their families, whilst the fight to repeal bad law continues.
    Please sign the Lennox petition, there are currently over 67,000 signatures supporting the release of Lennox. Please share the petition with all your contacts, family and friends:

    Please visit the Save Lennox campaign  –

    Thursday 1 September 2011

    Carmarthenshire Puppy Farm Update:

    Puppy Farm Planning Application Approved by Council:


    Sadly, as expected, retrospective planning permission at Beili Bedw, has been approved by Carmarthenshire County council.
    The council met on 30th August, there was a private site visit followed by the planning committee meeting.
    The application was for use of an agricultural shed as dog breeding kennels, the building measures 27.4m x 7.6m and is used to house up to 96 dogs used for breeding, you can read the full details of planning application W/24449 online here.

    The current licence at these premises is for 155 bitches, 37 stud dogs and 4 other dogs bringing it to a total of 196 dogs.

    In reference to the hundreds of objections received the council stated: "It is this licence and legislation outside the remit of the Planning Authority which would determine many issues relating to the numbers of animals and the conditions at the kennels."

    The licence is renewed each year and is due to expire next on 21st December 2011. The premises have been licensed yearly since 2000.
    It was declared that there are 1.5 full time workers associated with the dog breeding.

    The agricultural holding where the dogs are kennelled comprises of 120 acres of land, with an additional 100 acres rented and approx... 850 ewes in addition to the 196 breeding dogs (this doesn't include the puppies).
    Legislation requiring a certain staff to animal ratio is not in place yet stated the council.
    The council states: “Any breach of licence would be investigated by the Public Protection Division. They have confirmed that legislation requiring a certain staff to animal ratio is not in place as yet and for dog breeding there is no specific area of space required per animal.”
    Exactly how 1.5 full time workers can take care of 196 breeding dogs plus of course the puppies, with pregnant and nursing dogs on site, weaning puppies, well you can draw your own conclusions.

    We do not think that 1.5 members of stafff can adequately care for such a high number of dogs, taking into account dogs need more than just food, water and cleaning out, this alone would in our opinion take more than 1.5 people to supply properly but then what also about exercise, socialisation, grooming, health checks, the weaning of puppies?

    Here is the petition set up ‘Say No to Carmarthenshire puppy farm,  please sign the petition and pass it on to your contacts and friends.

    These dogs need your voice -
     please write to your MP and bring this issue to their attention.