Animal welfare in the United Kingdom relates to the treatment of animals in fields such as agriculture, hunting, medical testing and the domestic ownership of animals. It is distinct from animal conservation.

Laws

The

Animal Welfare Act 2006 The Animal Welfare Act 2006 (c 45) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Overview It is the first signing of pet law since the Protection of Animals Act 1911, which it largely replaced. It also superseded and consolidated more tha ...

is the latest animal welfare legislation in England and Wales. It superseded and consolidated more than 20 other pieces of legislation, such as the

Protection of Animals Act 1934 The Protection of Animals Act 1934 was an act of the British parliament effectively making rodeo, as it then existed, illegal in England, Scotland and Wales.Garner Robert (1993) ''Animals, Politics and Morality'' Manchester, UK, Manchester Univer ...

and the

Abandonment of Animals Act 1960 The Abandonment of Animals Act 1960 (8 & 9 Eliz. II c. 43) was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom. It received Royal Assent on 2 June 1960. The Act made it a criminal offense to abandon an animal, or permit it to be abandoned, "in circum ...

. The 2006 Act introduced tougher penalties for neglect and cruelty, including fines of up to £20,000, a maximum jail term of 51 weeks and a lifetime ban on some owners keeping pets. Enforcers of the act such as the police or local authority inspectors (but not organisations such as the

RSPCA The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales that promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest a ...

) have more powers to intervene if they suspect a pet is being neglected. The act also introduced a welfare offence for the first time. This places a

duty of care In tort law, a duty of care is a legal obligation that is imposed on an individual, requiring adherence to a standard of reasonable care while performing any acts that could foreseeably harm others. It is the first element that must be establis ...

on pet owners to provide for their animals' basic needs, such as adequate food and water, veterinary treatment and an appropriate environment in which to live. Previously the duty of care had only existed for farm animals. The minimum age for buying a pet, or winning one as a prize, is 16 without parental accompaniment. In Scotland, the

Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 The Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 (asp 11) is an Act of the Scottish Parliament. It received Royal Assent on 11 July 2006. The act consolidated, repealed and replaced many other pieces of legislation, such as the Protection of An ...

bans giving animals as prizes altogether. The docking (cutting or removal) of animals' tails for cosmetic reasons is illegal in the UK, with the exception of working dogs such as those in the police and armed forces. In 2014, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

received an A out of possible grades A, B, C, D, E, F, G on

World Animal Protection World Animal Protection, formerly The World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) is an international non-profit animal rights organization that has been in operation since 1981. The charity describes its vision as: A world where animal ...

's Animal Protection Index. However, it was lowered to a B rating in their 2020 index. The

Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill The Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022 (c. 22) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was introduced to Parliament by the Government of the United Kingdom at the 2021 State Opening of Parliament. The act recognises animal sentien ...

was proposed at the 2021 State Opening of Parliament.

Animal welfare issues

Animal testing

UK animal testing legislation is regarded as the strictest in the world. The

Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 The Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, sometimes referred to as ASPA, is an Act of Parliament, Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (1986 c. 14) passed in 1986, which regulates the use of animals used for research in the UK. The Act ...

(ASPA) regulates the conditions under which animal testing can occur in the UK. Those applying for a licence must explain why such research cannot be done through ''

in vitro ''In vitro'' (meaning in glass, or ''in the glass'') studies are performed with microorganisms, cells, or biological molecules outside their normal biological context. Colloquially called "test-tube experiments", these studies in biology an ...

'' (non-animal) methods. All research projects must pass an ethical review panel set by the Home Office, which aims to decide if the potential benefits outweigh any suffering for the animals involved.

Primate Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians (monkeys and apes, the latter including huma ...

cat The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...

s, and

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...

s have additional protection over other vertebrates included in the Act. Revised legislation came into force in January 2013. This has been expanded to protect "all living vertebrates, other than man, and any living

cephalopod A cephalopod is any member of the molluscan class Cephalopoda (Greek plural , ; "head-feet") such as a squid, octopus, cuttlefish, or nautilus. These exclusively marine animals are characterized by bilateral body symmetry, a prominent head ...

. Fish and amphibia are protected once they can feed independently and cephalopods at the point when they hatch. Embryonic and foetal forms of mammals, birds and reptiles are protected during the last third of their gestation or incubation period." The definition of regulated procedures was also expanded: "A procedure is regulated if it is carried out on a protected animal and may cause that animal a level of pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm equivalent to, or higher than, that caused by inserting a hypodermic needle according to good veterinary practice." It also includes modifying the genes of a protected animal if this causes the animal pain, suffering, distress, or lasting harm. The ASPA also considers other issues such as animal sources, housing conditions, identification methods, and the humane killing of animals.

Dog fighting

Dog fighting in the UK is banned by the

Protection of Animals Act 1911 The Protection of Animals Act 1911 (c. 27) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It received royal assent on 18 August 1911. The act consolidated several previous pieces of legislation, among others repealing the Cruelty to Animals ...

, which was specific in outlawing "the fighting or baiting of animals." However, it has been estimated that a dog fight takes place every day in the UK. Fighting dogs are pitted against each other for "profit and reputational gain". Dog fighting can cause "torn flesh, blood loss, disembowelment or even death" of the dogs involved. Stolen pets, such as smaller dogs and cats are used as "bait" to train canines for fights, which can last for up to five hours. Traditionally dog fighting was hidden away in rural areas, but is believed to be prevalent in urban areas as well. It is often related to gang activity. "Dog Fighting Report From League Against Cruel Sports Reveals How Many Fights Takes Place Every Day", The Huffington Post UK, Kathryn Snowdon, 11 December 2015.
/ref>

Sentencing for animal cruelty

The previous maximum jail term of 51 weeks in prison for animal neglect and cruelty was criticised as being too lenient. In 2013,

Adrian Sanders Adrian Mark Sanders (born 25 April 1959) is a Liberal Democrat politician in the United Kingdom. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Torbay in Devon from 1997 until his defeat in the 2015 general election. Early life Sanders is the ...

, a Liberal Democrat politician, argued for sentences to be doubled to two years in prison. "House of Commons Hansard Debates for 15 October 2013", Adrian Sanders, (Citation: HC Deb, 15 October 2013, c226WH).
/ref> In practice, the previous maximum jail term of 51 weeks was often not applied. Tried in magistrates courts, animal cruelty cases are considered

summary offences A summary offence or petty offence is a violation in some common law jurisdictions that can be proceeded against summarily, without the right to a jury trial and/or indictment (required for an indictable offence). Canada In Canada, summary offen ...

, with magistrates' courts only permitted to sentence people to a maximum of six months jail time. In Northern Ireland in 2016, animal-welfare-related amendments to the Justice (No.2) Bill have been passed by the Northern Ireland Assembly. , the Bill is awaiting royal assent. The amendments give Northern Ireland the toughest penalties for animal cruelty anywhere in the UK or Ireland. The maximum sentence available for cases heard in Magistrates Courts have increased from six to twelve months. The maximum fine has risen from £5,000 to £20,000. In Crown Courts, where more serious cases are heard, the maximum sentence for animal cruelty has increased from two to five years."Justice Bill: 'Revenge porn' and animal cruelty laws passed by MLAs", Jayne McCormack, BBC News NI, 11 February 2016.
/ref> "Media Brief, Welfare of Animals Act (NI) 2011", Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, 20 February 2016, p.11.
/ref> A new Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Bill which enables tougher prison sentences of up to five years, received Royal Assent on 29 April 2021 and came into force on 29 June 2021.

References

{{Animal welfare by country Animal welfare and rights in the United Kingdom Fauna of the United Kingdom