44 Section 2
2.4 Animal Welfare and Crime
Awareness of links between the live animal trade, pet ownership and man-
agement of social problems extends to criminal behaviour. While most of
the information available in this area is anecdotal, there is growth in the
number of practical cases showing links between animal welfare incidents
and such things as organized animal fights (Levinthal, 2010); use of animals,
such as donkeys, to transport illegal goods like guns or cannabis (ISS, 2010);
or illegal dog breeding and puppy farming.
This area can overlap with several others mentioned in this book, such as
the links between animal–human abuse and illegal wildlife trade. Although
we are not providing detail in this book, it is important to acknowledge
these connections and to build up an evidence base and case study library
to help develop collaborative frameworks, and to improve effectiveness in
joint work within this complex area.
Case Study 11 – The commercial illegal puppy trade in the UK (by the Royal
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, RSPCA)
Between 2012 and 2017 the RSPCA saw a 132% increase in complaints about
the puppy trade to its UK call centre. The increase was mainly the result of
changes to puppy import controls in 2012 and the increased use of the internet
to search for a puppy. Puppy purchasing behaviour is generally an emotionalContinuedCase Study 10. Continued.Image credit: Tomas Stargardter