Charity leads crackdown on illegal puppy farm trade
DOZENS of puppies that had been smuggled into Scotland have been seized by animal welfare officers in just nine months.
The discoveries of 27 dogs were made at Cairnryan Port in Dumfries and Galloway as part of Operation Delphin – a task force set up by The Scottish SPCA.
The charity undertook intelligence-led missions to target those involved with the illegal puppy trade. All the puppies were brought over from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland from large scale puppy farms.
In November 2017, the charity also recovered 100 animals from a farm in northeast Scotland.
The head of the Scottish SPCA’s SIU, who cannot be named due to his undercover operations, said: “Unfortunately, the puppy trade is big business in Scotland with thousands of dogs being brought into the country each year from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, in particular from large scale puppy farms. They are then sold on at huge profit by the dealers.
“We are working in partnership with a number of organisations and agencies
our newsdesk on 0141 302 6520 or send an email to news@ eveningtimes. co.uk on Operation Delphin, including Police Scotland, Trading Standards, HMRC and all UK and Ireland animal welfare charities such as the USPCA, DSPCA, ISPCA, and RSPCA.
“The efforts of all involved have helped us to make inroads in to this brutal trade but it is a growing problem. The welfare of the breeding bitch and the puppies is compromised due to intensive breeding regimes and causes distress to the families who purchase these puppies.
“When trafficked pups reach their new owner via the dealers they often develop diseases such as parvo virus and giardia. Often the young dogs die from these diseases which can be extremely distressing for the owners.”
Representatives from the Scottish SPCA attended the Scottish Parliament on Thursday, December 20 to discuss the campaign.