WOMAN FINED £600 FOR TAIL DOCKING HER ROTTWEILER PUPPIES

A Pembrokeshire woman fined £600 after taking three Rottweiler puppies to the Republic of Ireland to have their tails docked has defended the practice.
On returning to Llangwm, Caroline Terry put them up for sale claiming the tails had been legally removed.
Pembrokeshire Council prosecuted her and said it was "test case" to clarify the law banning the docking of puppy tails in Wales.
Terry said many breeders took their puppies abroad to be docked.
Speaking to BBC Wales she also said there was little demand for Rottweiler puppies that had their tails.
"If you look on the internet there are thousands and thousands of unwanted puppies, people don't want undocked Rottweiler," she said.
"People are still going to Ireland - they saying they are born and weaned in Ireland but how are you going to prove that?

"It's not as if I did it myself - I took them to a professional vet. It is not a very painful procedure."
There is a high instance of pain to the animal - it is an animal welfare issue
Gethin Russell-Jones, RSPCA

Magistrates in Haverfordwest heard she had put the puppies up for sale via the internet at £500 each.
Terry's solicitor maintained because the puppies were taken to the Republic of Ireland to have their tails docked it was outside UK law.
However magistrates ruled that taking the puppies abroad with the intention of having the tails removed was an illegal act.
Speaking after the case, the council's animal welfare manager Nigel Watts said: "The court's decision indicates it is not an option to take any breed of dog abroad for tail-docking for cosmetic purposes."
Tail docking expect in certain cases for working dogs has been illegal in Wales since 2007.
The RSPCA had supported a campaign to outlaw the practice.
Spokesman Gethin Russell-Jones said: "Historically it was a cosmetic thing as some believed they looked better with their tails docked. "There seems to be a consensus now that there is no need for it. "There is a high instance of pain to the animal - it is an animal welfare issue."

It has been illegal to dock dogs' tails since 2007

Sourced from: bbc

suki has her tail and yeah it took a whie to get used to but i love her more for having it, there is nothing worse than not knowing if your dog is happy or sad, titch often looks at me and i dont quite know how he is feeling (his is docked) i dont think it is a crule proceduer if it is done by a vet but when you get the idiots that think they can do it thereself you can understand why it is illigal, just type in docked tails gone bad into the net and the pictures break your heart.