CHARITY Cats Protection has welcomed groundbreaking new laws on animal welfare in Scotland but says more still needs to be done to help cats.
The charity says new licensing regulations which come into force today will help to stamp out rogue cat breeders who put profit before the welfare of kittens and cats.
Cats Protection’s advocacy and government relations Officer for Scotland Alice Palombo said: “Over the past 18 months of the pandemic, a combination of increased demand for kittens and restrictions on household visiting has created the perfect conditions for unscrupulous breeders to flourish. We’ve heard countless stories of people being duped into buying underage, poorly kittens which either haven’t survived or have needed costly vet care.
“It’s not just the kittens that suffer – there are many female cats forced to have litter after litter in poor conditions.”
Under the new laws, anyone breeding three or more litters of kittens in a 12-month period must be licensed. Female cats will be limited to two litters in a year at most. There will be a ban on breeding cats with extreme traits which can lead to health conditions, such as the Scottish Fold.
Erin Macqueen, 22, from Glasgow, bought a kitten in March which turned out to be just five weeks old. Named Frankie, she died a few weeks later from a condition believed to be related to its poor start in life.
Macqueen said: “Frankie was advertised as male and 12 weeks old. The vet said she was a girl and only five weeks. Alarm bells rang when the seller delivered her to me. She wasn’t even in a carrier, the seller just had her tucked under her coat. I could see Frankie was tiny, but by that point it’s too heartbreaking to say no. I didn’t know what I’d be sending her back to.”
After becoming unwell, Frankie had to be put to sleep, leaving Macqueen distressed and with a £750 vet bill.
Cats Protection is now launching its Time is Meow campaign. A five-point action plan includes compulsory microchipping for pet cats, a ban on snares, encouraging landlords to let renters have cats, inclusion of animal welfare in the National Curriculum and more work to tackle unscrupulous breeding.
Palombo added: “Scotland is leading the way in the UK when it comes to regulating cat breeding and animal rescues but there is always more to be done.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel