Puppy Smuggling Scandal in the UK
In collaboration with:
Tracks have been investigating and exposing the scale of the illegally important puppy trade for almost a decade. Since 2014, we’ve undertaken five in-depth investigations into the trafficking of illegal puppies into the UK from Eastern Europe for Dogs Trust UK.
Our investigative footage revealed large-scale networks of criminal breeders, dealers, and corrupt vets in Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Serbia, and the UK involved in the trade, providing mountains of evidence of the industrial scale of illegal importation of puppies to meet the huge demand.
The Issue
Since 2012, the Pet Travel Scheme, created to make it easy for owners to take their family pets on holiday with them, has been abused by unscrupulous traders. They’ve taken advantage of the scheme’s simple set-up to illegally import thousands of puppies for sale, making huge profit at the cost of welfare. This has resulted in puppies – which are often too young, unvaccinated and in poor welfare – being transported to the UK in terrible conditions, to be sold on to unsuspecting buyers. Alongside Dogs Trust, we first exposed this cruel puppy smuggling trade in 2014.
Impact
These investigations have had a major media impact with BBC, ITV, and SKY featuring footage on its news bulletins. The stories were also covered in the Times, Telegraph, Daily Mail, Independent, Daily Express, and a host of local and specialist newspapers. Great publicity for the campaign and Dogs Trust!
The results of our findings have been used to lobby the UK Government and have resulted in new measures put in place to stem the trade and have resulted in falling numbers of illegal puppies entering the UK.
Explore the findings of our reports: 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2018.
Dogs Trust UK is now calling on the Government to urgently take action on Puppy Smuggling after dropping the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals Bill). The Bill was essential to help protect countless dogs from horrific mistreatment, but shockingly it was dropped in May 2023. The Bill, and future legislation under it, would have closed legal loopholes that allow unscrupulous traders to sell and import dogs with awful mutilations like cropped ears – a cruel and unnecessary procedure. It would have also helped stop young puppies and pregnant dogs from continuing to be illegally imported.
Investigation featured in multiple media outlets including:
Tracks Investigations has undertaken over 295 investigative film projects supporting over 40 conservation, environmental and animal protection NGOs since its inception in 2006. Learn more about how you can work with us here. To support our investigative work for animals, click here.