Investigations for illegal pet imports soar in three years

New research has shown the number of investigations into illegally imported pets has risen by a quarter in three years.

The number of investigations made by local councils into illegally imported cats and dogs has grown by 26% – from 221 in 2017-18 to 279 in 2019-201 – according to work commissioned by Direct Line Pet Insurance¹.

Research showed 740 investigations have been carried out into illegally imported pets since 2017 – the majority of these (93%) for dogs, with 7% for cats.

Common breed imports

According to the report, French bulldogs are the breed most commonly investigated for being illegally imported – something researchers believe is due to huge rise in popularity of French bulldogs in the UK, where registrations of the breed are now 15 times higher than they were a decade ago².

Dachshunds, American bulldogs, Pomeranians and chow chows complete the top five most common breeds for being illegally imported.

The problem has escalated during the coronavirus pandemic, with the past 12 months accounting for nearly two-fifths (38%) of all investigations into illegally imported pets since 2017‑18. Of these investigations, more than half (53%) were found to have been illegally imported, of which a third (34%) were seized.

Consideration

Despite the increase in investigations, separate research³ by Direct Line found a third (32%) of adults have or would still consider importing a pet from abroad, with 11% having done so already.

Those importing cats spent £293 per animal – collectively equating to £1.3 billion – while those importing dogs have spent £323 per dog, or £1.6 billion.

Young people are most likely to look abroad to rescue or buy a dog or cat, with more than half (57%) of 18 to 34‑year‑olds surveyed stating they have or would consider importing a pet from abroad, compared to 15% of over-55s.

Many were motivated to look abroad for particular breeds, with one in six (16%) saying they would look at other countries due to a better variety of breeds being available or because the breed they were looking for wasn’t available in the UK (15%).

One in seven (14%) admitted they would look abroad because it’s easier to buy or rescue a dog from overseas than it is in the UK.

However, 78% of those who did look overseas experienced some problems doing so, with the most common issue being that the animal was seized under suspicion of being imported illegally, and needed to be quarantined and vaccinated – something experienced by a third (33%) of those who imported pets

References

1. Freedom of Information Act request sent to all UK councils, October 2020.

2. Statista (2020). Number of French bulldog dogs registered in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2010 to 2019.

3. Research conducted by Opinium among a nationally representative sample of 2,000 adults between 29 October and 3 November 2020.

• Read the full story in the 2 March issue of Vet Times.