Tail docking law now in force

From today the practice of tail docking for dogs will be illegal in Wales, with some exceptions.

The law will allow Veterinary Surgeons to dock a dog’s tail if it is for medical reasons. The regulations governed by the Welsh Assembly state which other organisations can carry out the procedure.

The Anti-Docking Alliance (ADA) has supported the change in legislation which has been titled the Animal Welfare Act 2006.

However, Pauline Baines, the founder of ADA said that he is not happy about the way the legislation has been drafted. According to him the law gives exemptions in selected regions.

He said, "Crossbreeds should not have been exempted as most breeds originated from crossbreeds and these regulations indicate that breeds such as Spaniels crossed with Setters may end up with docked tails. Likewise a Bedlington terrier crossed with a Spanish Water dog could be deprived of a tail for no logical reason other than it just might get a tail injury whilst at work. Injuries to other parts of the dog during work seem to have no consideration in these exemptions and the fact that removing part/all of a dog's tail in the first place is 100% injury.

“The question does not seem to have been answered during consultation as to whether these dogs are ‘fit for purpose’ or doing work that endangers their welfare. Tail length when breeding (unlike the dog's head) has not been a consideration since breeders have removed all or part of it from the dog's body; neither does ADA consider the use of the tail-less gene in breeding programmes acceptable for genetic health reasons."

The ADA explained that anyone who docked a dog or a puppy must make sure that they have veterinary certificate explaining that it was lawfully docked.

The ADA said, "I think we are seeing the same trend in the UK as has happened in other countries that banned docking. Prior to a ban, there were more litter registrations in order that breeders obtained their last litters of docked puppies. The following year, registrations dropped in order to give the impression that breeders were dropping out of these docked breeds. In the subsequent year litter numbers regained normal levels."