Breeding business uncovered
POLICE RAID DISCOVERS DOZENS OF CATS AND DOGS IN TINY CAGES AT A WEST DRAYTON PROPERTY
POLICE and council staff were shocked when they raided a west London home and found dozens of cats and dogs in tiny cages stacked from floor to ceiling.
Another room at the house in West Drayton was being used for the animals to give birth in what turned out to be a huge illegal breeding operation.
In the garden, a large fenced-off area contained a complex of buildings, including storage sheds and a large wooden building where cats were kept in wooden cages.
Animals were also being kept in outdoor enclosures and wooden pens.
A man and woman who bred and sold dogs and cats at the home have been told to pay nearly £50,000 after admitting they were not licensed.
Galyna Khudyakova, 57, and Volodymyr Tymoshenko, 47, of Colne Avenue, West Drayton, each pleaded guilty to two animal licensing offences at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday April 6.
The offences related to the sale of pets and the breeding of puppies – both of which require a licence in Hillingdon.
Khudyakova and Tymoshenko, who were prosecuted by Hillingdon Council, were each ordered to pay £24,150 (£4,500 for each offence, £15,000 prosecution costs and a £150 victim surcharge). In total, they must pay £48,300.
Hillingdon Council and the Metropolitan Police executed a search warrant at Khudyakova and Tymoshenko’s address in December 2018.
Councillor John Riley, Hillingdon Council’s cabinet member for public safety and transport, said: “It was clear from the outset that this was a large-scale, long-term commercial breeding and sales business.
“There was simply no excuse for Khudyakova and Tymoshenko not to have known about their licensing obligations and therefore I am pleased with the considerable financial penalty handed down by the court.
“We will always act swiftly to protect the interests of consumers.”
If you suspect someone of breeding or selling animals without a licence, report it via licensing@hillingdon.gov.uk.
The full offences committed were: ■ Selling animals as pets (or with a view to their being later resold as pets) in the course of a business, including keeping animals in the course of a business with a view to their being sold or resold contrary to Section 13(1) and 13(6) of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 and Regulation 3(1) and Schedule 1 Paragraph 2 of the Animal Welfare (Licensing of
Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018.
■ Breeding three or more litters of puppies in any 12 month period and/or breeding dogs and advertising a business of selling dogs contrary to Section 13(1) and 13(6) of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 and Regulation 3(1) and Schedule 1 Paragraph 8 of the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018.