CAT OWNERS COULD BE FINED £500 IF THEY BREAK PROPOSED NEW RULES
Source: Manchester Evening News (Extract)
Posted: December 6, 2021
The government has announced new rules for cat owners which could see a £500 fine if ignored.
New plans would mean that all cat owners must ensure their cat is microchipped before they are 20 weeks old – the cat’s details must be stored and kept up-to-date in a database.
If a cat owner is found to not have microchipped their cat, they will have 21 days to sort it out or risk facing a fine of up to £500.
The compulsory microchipping of cats has been a ‘key manifesto commitment’ according to the government.
Government figures show that there are more than 10.8 million pet cats in the UK – as many as 2.8 million are not microchipped.
According to a recent consultation, 99 per cent of people support compulsory cat microchipping.
Chipping is a simple and quick procedure that involves a vet inserting a small chip with a unique serial number under a cat’s skin.
The unique serial number allows a scanner to check records against a database, allowing a lost pet to be reunited with its owner.
According to Cats Protection, eight out of 10 stray cats coming into their centres are not microchipped. They add that the procedure usually costs between £20 and £30.
It has not yet been announced by the government when the rules will be enforced, but have advised that it won’t happen until a review has been completed.
Animal Welfare Minister Lord Goldsmith said: “Cats are much-loved parts of our families and making sure that they’re microchipped is the best possible way of making sure that you are reunited with them if they are ever lost or stolen.
“These new rules will help protect millions of cats across the country and will be brought in alongside a range of other protections we are introducing under our Action Plan for Animal Welfare.”
Jacqui Cuff, Cats Protection’s Head of Advocacy and Government Relations, said: “Every day, we see how important microchipping is for cats and for the people who love them – whether it’s reuniting a lost cat with their owner, identifying an injured cat, or helping to ensure an owner can be informed in the sad event that their cat has been hit and killed by a car.
“Microchipping is by far the most effective and quickest way of identifying lost cats and can help ease the pressure on rescue charities like Cats Protection. Without a microchip, a lost cat will most likely end up being rehomed to a new home as there is often no trace of their original owner.”
The measures have been announced as part of their ‘Action Plan for Animal Welfare’, which the government says will include efforts to tackle puppy smuggling and a new pet abduction offence law.
