The clampdown on puppy farms has begun in earnest, says Neans McSweeney.MORE than 400 dogs, some of them just days old, have been rescued from barns, sheds, outhouses and plucked from some of the most awful conditions ever seen by animal welfare officers in swoops on puppy farms since the year started.

And it’s only the tip of the iceberg, the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals says. There are as many as 50 large-scale puppy farms dotted throughout the country, which keep up to 400 dogs at a time. Many, though not all, are keeping dogs, particularly those breeding, in conditions in which their life is a constant struggle for survival.

With many more raids planned in the coming weeks, the clampdown has begun on a highly lucrative industry and the mass breeding of dogs which is fuelled by greed. Dachshunds, King Charles and other popular breeds typically retail at around €600 each. Puppy farm operators typically receive around €300 per pup.

Brood bitches on such farms are not pets. Most don’t have papers, collars, identity tags or names and rarely see the light of day. They exist solely to produce puppies, mere breeding machines for commercial gain by their owners.

Many are still breeding when they reach the human equivalent of 70.

Born into a cold hostile world, tiny puppies are hostage to fortune. Bred in atrocious conditions where their mothers often live a miserable existence in cramped, crude, unhygienic conditions, they are exposed to stress and disease.

“Under current legislation, we can’t rescue these animals unless there is cruelty, disease, they are injured or are in a condition which causes suffering to them. We know of a puppy farm where up to 500 dogs are being kept in very cramped conditions. But because it can’t be classed as cruelty, there’s nothing we can do,” according to the ISPCA’s Alastair Keen.

The vast majority of neglect and cruelty uncovered by the ISPCA has been to breeding dogs. “Once they can be kept healthy enough to breed, and they are bred constantly, these people are making money.

“There’s little or no management so some of the dogs are in-bred. This causes all sorts of problems, physically and mentally. An in-bred dog can be like a special needs child and requires very different care. But the buyer won’t discover this until after they have shelled out money and they discover it has some physical difficulty or it has behavioural problems.”

The vast majority of puppy farmed dogs are exported. Tighter legislation in Britain requires that all commercial breeders are licensed and must obey strict guidelines and regulations. There are no such rules and regulations here. Puppies farmed typically end up being sent to Britain, Scotland or Wales and will be sold through the small ads section of newspapers there.

A large dealer network operates throughout Ireland, Britain and Europe. These individuals are the lynchpin of the trade, the middlemen and act as the link between breeder and pet shops. They collect and transport hundreds of puppies to pet retailers and commercial outlets, mostly throughout Britain and France. Many others are exported, mainly to the Far East, Japan, Hong Kong and China.

This trade in pet animals is steeped in cruelty and abuse, from the breeder through transportation by the dealers and into the pet outlets where puppies are treated as mere commodities by greedy profiteers. Behind their closed doors can lie a sordid tale of misery and neglect. The silent suffering of man’s best friend is a sad indictment of a society which allows this to happen.

At the stroke of a pen, much of the suffering could be wiped out, the ISPCA says. “We want the section on the licensing of dog breeders in the Dogs Act of 1986 to be signed. It doesn’t have to go through the Dáil or anything. It just has to be signed.

“This would regulate how people keep multiple numbers of dogs for commercial purposes. It would clean up the business straight away and eliminate the cruelty and suffering we are uncovering. It’s as simple as just signing it into law.”

But until the legislation is passed, the clampdown will continue. The ISPCA knows which farms are operating illegally and are gearing up to clampdown. The only thing stopping the Society at present is funds. Each raid costs up to €16,000 in vets bills, transport and rehousing of the animals until suitable homes can be found for them. And because the society depends on charitable donations, that money has to be raised first.

“Our clampdown will continue and anything we have asked the public to do, they have done.”

www.ISPCA.ie