Pet travel and post EU puppy and kitten smuggling Both commercial and non-commercial importation of dogs and cats are increasing. Battersea and the animal welfare sector are concerned that the current Pet Travel Scheme (PETS) is being used by illegal traders to bypass the more restrictive requirements of commercial importation, which is required for animals intended for sale. This can be seen in the increase in numbers of dogs travelling to the UK after PETS was introduced. In 2010, before PETS was introduced, 26,000 dogs entered the UK for non-commercial purposes, this rose to 53,000 in 2013 once the Scheme was in place. In 2022, 279,402 dogs entered the UK under PETS.Many of these animals brought into the country illegally via this loophole are unvaccinated, transported in unhealthy conditions for days and forego any necessary veterinary checks, posing serious welfare concerns and biosecurity risks to the UK. Following the UK’s departure from the EU, the Government was required to review and amend the regulations on dogs and cats arriving in the UK. The requirements for commercial and non-commercial imports were intended to be changed in 2021 through the UK Government laying the Animal Welfare (kept Animals) Bill. However, the Bill stalled and was subsequently dropped. A Private Member’s Bill was bought forward in 2023 to bring into law the imports requirement previously in the Kept Animals Bill, however this fell in 2024 at the General Election.Existing importation regulations do not protect animal health or welfare. Battersea is calling on the Government to introduce an imports Bill which will:Make it illegal to import animals with harmful mutilations such as dogs with cropped ears or docked tails, or cats that have been declawed.Make it illegal to import heavily pregnant animals.Improve data collection and availability and ensure thorough border checks.Raise public awareness on where to responsibly source a pet. Increase post-vaccination wait period for rabies from 3 to 12 weeks so that puppies and kittens cannot be imported under six months of age. This would support enforcers in identifying underage dogs/cats and reduce the economic viability of smuggling, as puppies are less sought after at this age.Treat all dogs and cats against tick borne diseases prior to entry, to protect the UK and our domestic animals. Reduce number of dogs permitted to travel across international borders to 3 per non-commercial vehicle. Any more than this would rarely be possible while protecting animal safety and compliant with safe transport regulations. Our research has shown that only 3 in 1000 dog owners have ever travelled with more than 3 animals in a vehicle; it is possible that those doing so may be commercial sellers masquerading as pet owners.We will push the Government to introduce this legislation which will clamp down on kitten and puppy smuggling.