Rásaíocht Con Éireann remind all Transporters of their obligations under

EU Animal Welfare and Transport Regulations

Friday 7 November 2014

After the deeply shocking and tragic deaths of eleven greyhounds last week on a ferry crossing from Ireland to France, Greyhound Racing Ireland stresses the importance of all those involved in the transportation of greyhounds of their absolute legal obligations.

In addition to the requirement for Type 2 transporter Authorisation, these legal requirements are:

Vehicle approval

When animals such as dogs, cats, small mammals, caged birds, reptiles etc.are being transported commercially from  Ireland, they must be transported  in a vehicle approved and certified for this purpose by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM).  This vehicle certificate of approval must accompany the vehicle and must be available for inspection if so requested by an authorised officer (portal staff, law enforcement officers and officials of the competent authorities at ports of entry and departure) Detailed guidelines in relation to the approval of vehicles are available in a document on the DAFM website at the following link http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/animaltransport/

Documents relating to consignments

Persons transporting all animals including pets must have with them and available for inspection at all times by an authorised officer, a document or documents giving the following details as regards the animals:

• their origin and their ownership; If the animals originate from more than one premises then the name and address of each premise must be recorded.
• their place of departure;
• the date and time of departure;
• their intended place of destination; if they are going to more than one destination the name and address of each place of destination must be recorded
• the expected duration of the intended journey.

A sample copy of such a document is available in a document on the DAFM website at the following link http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/animaltransport/

Specific animal health requirements and documents required for all commercially transported dogs of all ages 

Each dog (including each pup) must be accompanied by an EU Pet Passport showing –

• Microchip identification, including date of insertion (which must precede date of vaccination).
• Valid rabies vaccination. The primary (first) rabies vaccination must be administered at least 21 days before travel A private veterinary practitioner must complete and certify (in the pet passport) clinical examination of animals within 24 hours of travel to ensure they are healthy and fit for the journey.
• Premises of origin must be registered with DAFM and a health (‘Balai’) certificate must be issued by the DAFM within 24 hours of scheduled departure time – available from the local Regional Veterinary Office. 

Specific animal welfare requirements and documents required for dogs of all ages 

• Pups must be at least 8 weeks of age to travel without their dam, under Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005
• Animals must have access to food and water for the duration of the journey

Detailed guidelines on the welfare of these animals during transport are included in a document on the DAFM website at the following link: http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/animaltransport/

Breach of any of the above requirements is an offense attracting heavy penalties and possible suspension of approval.

As mentioned in our press release last week, Rásaíocht Con Éireann in collaboration with the relevant authorities are endeavoring to ensure that all necessary measures and investigations are being carried out to prosecute those responsibly.