Dog Breeding Laws in India – Is it Legal to Breed Dogs?

Unlike most other legislations with regard to animals, the laws around commercial dog breeding are well developed in India and take a fairly comprehensive view of the subject. This guide provides an overview of the general rules around dog breeding, along with action points against illegal practices.

The Law on Dog Breeding in India

Commercial dog breeding is regulated by rules framed under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960. The relevant rules are the ‘Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Dog Breeding and Marketing) Rules, 2017.’

Requirement of Registration for Dog Breeding

Section 3 of the Rules states that no breeder can carry on or continue with breeding activity or own or house dogs for breeding and sale of dogs and pups unless the breeder has obtained the required certification for registration from the State Animal Welfare Board.

Minimum Criteria for Dog Breeding and Standards in Breeding Establishments

The Second Schedule to the Rules lays down the standards that should be maintained in a breeding establishment. These spell out the criteria for breeding as well as the minimum standards that should be followed with regard to housing, veterinary care, cleaning and sanitation, feeding, exercise, etc.

The criteria for breeding as provided in Section 5 of the Second Schedule includes: only normal, healthy female dogs that have reached their eighteenth month should be bred (Section 5.2), no female dog should be exploited to produce litters in two consecutive breeding seasons (Section 5.3), only one litter should be produced in one year and artificial or unnatural techniques should not be used to impregnate dogs (Section 5.5), and no female dog should be exploited to give birth to more than five litters of pups during her lifespan (Section 5.6).

In order to secure registration required under the Rules, the breeder has to provide information such as details of the accommodation and infrastructure available for the breeding establishment, arrangements for lighting, ventilation, heating and cooling, food, cleanliness, arrangements for veterinary support, details of dogs proposed to be bred, and qualification and experience of the applicant breeder. The standards regarding these are detailed in the different provisions of the Second Schedule to the Rules.

Inspection of Breeding Establishments

Section 7 of the Rules allows the State Animal Welfare Board to inspect a breeding establishment and revoke the registration of the breeder if the person is found to be violating the rules in the Second Schedule.

Action Points to Curb Unethical Dog Breeding Practices in India

As stated earlier, it is the State Animal Welfare Boards who are supposed to monitor and regulate dog breeding in India. However, most State Animal Welfare Boards have either not been formed or have not met in years.

The local police are also extremely unlikely to be knowledgeable of the rules for dog breeding.

Therefore, if you want to take action against unethical practices, it is necessary to know the law. The sections mentioned before are merely a summary of the rules surrounding dog breeding so you have an idea about what is allowed and what is not. If you suspect unethical dog breeding practices are taking place, the first thing to do is check the relevant Rules found here.

Once you know which Rule is specifically being violated, approach your local police office or municipal corporation with the relevant Rule as well as any evidence you may have.

At this point, the authorities should take over, but you may have to follow up extensively.

If you have hard evidence against the violation and the authorities are not taking action, consider taking the matter to social media.

Summary: Dog Breeding Laws in India

It is very important to keep an eye on the larger perspective.

Even if all the standards as mentioned in the Rules are followed, a female dog may still end up being exploited. It is not uncommon to find abandoned females of breeds such as Labradors and German Shepherds. Breeders use them for breeding for five years as allowed under the Rules and then simply abandon them when they can no longer be used for making money.

People, in their quest for dogs of certain breeds such as Labradors, Golden Retrievers, Beagles, Huskies, etc., fuel this system of dog breeding.

Don’t fuel the system. Adopt, don’t shop.

Commercial breeding often results in inbreeding, due to which dogs tend to be genetically weaker than their naturally mating counterparts. Dogs born of inbreeding may also be more prone to heart disease and skeletal abnormalities.

If you’re still hung up on a purebred, know that 25% of the dogs in shelters are estimated to be purebred.

————————————————

About the author, Viveak Keedia

This article is authored by Viveak Keedia, student of Law from Jindal Global Law School, New Delhi. Twenty-one year old Viveak has been vegan since 2015.

Cover sketch: Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay

Also read…