Puppy farming & dog breeding
Puppy farming and illegal dog breeding are widespread but still hidden and misunderstood. Being a dog lover is great, but true welfare goes beyond treats and toys — it starts with making informed, ethical choices before welcoming one into your home.
Meeting your new four-legged family member is really exciting, but it’s a big responsibility. A new puppy can be challenging – along with the fun, there’ll be plenty of little mishaps too.
But chewed slippers and little puddles are minor worries compared to the serious health and welfare issues caused by puppy farming and illegal dog breeding.
We often hear about puppies who have been poorly bred, exposed to disease, taken from their mothers too early and transported over long distances. It’s bad for the dogs and for their owners, who often face a traumatic and expensive time picking up the pieces.
That’s why experienced, reputable breeders are so important. They’ll raise puppies with the proper care and attention to ensure their life-long welfare – from before they’re born, while they’re puppies and long after they leave to become family pets. But sadly, they’re too few and far between.
Explore this section
What is illegal dog breeding?
Dog breeders in the UK have to follow a range of laws, including those covering animal welfare, breeding practices, and consumer protection.
In this short video, our Campaign Manager Natalie explains what illegal dog breeding looks like.
What is puppy farming?
Puppy farming has no official definition, but it refers to unethical or exploitative dog breeding. This includes large-scale facilities with poor living conditions and backyard breeders who overbreed dogs without regard for their welfare.
It also covers breeding that breaks animal welfare laws, whether intentionally or through ignorance, as dogs still suffer. At its core, puppy farming treats dogs as commodities rather than companions, which is why it must be stopped.
Puppy farms or puppy factories?
In the UK, around a million puppies and dogs are bought and sold every year. Our research shows that only one in five come from breeders that have been inspected and licensed by their local council*. Around four in five come from unknown sources.
This includes puppy farms in the UK and further afield. The term ‘farm’ gives the wrong impression – these operations are more like factories (in fact they’re also known as puppy mills). Dogs are bred intensively with no regard for their wellbeing, while unsold puppies are dumped, returned to the breeding sheds, or even killed.
For those that make it out, the future is often short – taken from their mothers too early and exposed to diseases before their immune systems have developed, many live just weeks. If they do survive, they can face a lifetime of ill-health or behavioural struggles. The situation is just as bad for the parent dogs, forced to churn out one litter after another until they’re either sent to rescues, sold on or killed.
* Even when a breeder is licensed, that’s not necessarily a guarantee of good welfare standards and some licensed dog breeders operate on a vast scale. Check out our advice about getting a dog responsibly to protect yourself from low-welfare dog breeders. Visit our Dog Breeding Map of the UK & Ireland to find out more about licensed dog breeding near you.
Puppy smuggling
As you might expect, the illegal UK puppy trade is also fueled by illegal importation of puppies (otherwise known as puppy smuggling). Thousands of puppies are imported illegally into the UK to meet demand for young, cute puppies.
Smugglers don’t care where the puppies are bred, nor do they care about the condition of the breeding mums and dads. These frightened and vulnerable pups are hidden from view on their long journeys and some may carry disease. They’re then often ‘passed off’ as locally-bred family dogs when they finally reach the UK.
Alongside other animal welfare campaigners, we support calls for the minimum age of puppy importation to be raised to 26 weeks (6 months of age) and are pleased to see a Bill, which would make this a reality, making its way through Parliament.
