The legal implication of certain interventions prohibited by law in the United Kingdom and Slovakia – a review

Mutilation of dogs is an emotive and controversial subject for veterinarians and animal keepers. The elective docking of a dog’s tail is illegal under both UK and Slovak law except for specific breeds that are intended to be used for specific purposes while the elective cropping of dogs’ ears is illegal under all circumstances. In the EU, there is much variation between countries with some having a total ban on these procedures and others allowing elective ear cropping specifically. Under the current UK as well as Slovak legislation there is no legal requirement for a central monitoring of the number of docking procedures undertaken, therefore it is not possible to analyse the efficacy of the legislation, specifically, the monitoring of the number of legally docked dogs that are not eventually used for the purpose for which their exemption was granted. There is also no certification scheme for dogs undergoing ear cropping legally in EU countries that permit it. It is suggested that greater monitoring be implemented of the eventual use of docked dogs and the EU granting proof of legality to ear cropped dogs in order to understand how great a risk is posed by illegal docking and cropping procedures. Legislation, procedures, pure breeds, working dogs Animal welfare is a key concern for many people and legislators are faced with the task of drafting legislation that would ensure minimum welfare standards while recognising the various roles animals play in human society. Of all the species domesticated by humans, the domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris) has a long history of domestication as both a companion animal and a working animal. This contrasting relationship leads to a conflict between the perceptions of minimum welfare standards imposed by different factions of society. Historically, dogs were used for tasks as varied as hunting, guarding, herding and protection, among others, and the recognition between a dog’s physical appearance and its functional abilities led to the development of many primitive breeds through the selection of individual dogs with desirable traits (Wayne and Ostrander 1999). Phenotypically each is unique and it was these phenotypic differences that allowed for selection of the individuals that were best suited to the role they were to play in human society (Pedersen et al. 2013). A key component of the development and physical appearance of the breed is the elective modification of its body, most notably through caudectomy, i.e. the surgical removal of all or part of the tail, herein referred to as ‘docking’ (Bennett and Perini 2003) and the surgical cosmetic otoplasty, referred to as ‘cropping’ (Cosenza 1988). The issue of cosmetic alteration, notably the docking of tails and cropping of ears provides a potential welfare concern for dogs and a legal, moral and ethical concern for veterinarians. Under the Slovakian and UK laws, ear cropping is illegal unless for medical reasons, however, the importation of dogs with ears cropped in some countries is not illegal. The docking of a dog’s tail is illegal in the UK unless the dog is certified as a working dog. Currently the onus lies on the owner of docked puppies to provide this evidence, however, ACTA VET. BRNO 2020, 89: 375–382; https://doi.org/10.2754/avb202089040375 Address for correspondence: Daniela Takáčová Department of Public Veterinary Medicine and Animal Welfare University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Kosice Komenskeho 73, 04181 Kosice, Slovak Republic Phone: +421915984608 E-mail: Daniela.Takacova@uvlf.sk http://actavet.vfu. cz/