Animal welfare and enforcement

National Police Chiefs' Council Lead for Dangerous Dogs and Companion Animals, Deputy Chief Constable Gareth Pritchard said:

“Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 there is no one agency that is held responsible or accountable for enforcement of animal welfare. This means there are inconsistencies, however, the police, local authorities and animal welfare charities do seek to work together to deal with serious cruelty to animals.

“While powers under the Animal Welfare Act are not regularly used by frontline officers, every force has access to a nationwide network of police dog legislation officers and wildlife crime officers who have received specialist welfare training. Some larger police forces do provide an animal welfare capability.

"We welcome the Committee for Environment Food and Rural Affairs’ Inquiry into the welfare of domestic pets.”