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 The Welsh Assembly’s Code of Practice for the welfare of rabbits was launched in a speech by Elin Jones, Assembly Minister for Rural Affairs at the Companion Animal Welfare Enhancement Scheme on 11th November in Cardiff.
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Wales is the only nation to have published companion animal and equine Codes of Practice, leaving the Scottish Parliament and Defra behind. But it appears the Code has missed the mark.
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‘The final version of the Code is almost a short novel, 60 pages in length,’ said Meriel France, Education and Welfare Manager at the Pet Care Trust. ‘We are dismayed that it has turned out to be such an unwieldy document, having already voiced our concerns during the consultation process.
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‘It is disappointing that, rather than issuing best practice guidelines, the document includes statements of fact, expending a number of pages explaining what a rabbit is and does, for example. This moves away from the more user friendly template used by the Welsh Assembly Government for the dog and cat codes.
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‘Whilst we applaud the principle of Codes of Practice in helping pet keepers to care for their animals, requiring them to wade through unnecessarily protracted paperwork will not have the desired effect. The Pet Care Trust calls upon Defra and the Scottish Parliament to avoid these pitfalls and to approach their guidance legislation with fresh eyes. Short really is sweet.’
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