Animal Welfare Bill

I hope that I will not bore your Lordships with the story of my dog, Prospero. About six weeks to two months ago, when I rang home to speak to my wife, she was in a considerable state, because she had been out that afternoon in the garden and the dog had wandered off in the way that dogs often do. In the adjoining field, which was mine, were some sheep with young lambs that were mine. If an unattended lurcher is next door to a field with sheep and a lot of young lambs, it is like putting a small child in front of an open box of chocolates—the consequences are reasonably predictable. Prospero forgot his training, chased the lambs and helped himself to one of them. As everyone knows, that behaviour is unacceptable for a dog in the countryside, whoever the lambs might belong to. What should we do? I sought advice and was told that probably, in all the circumstances, it was worth trying to see if we could instil a bit of discipline into the dog to make him remember that such behaviour should not be repeated. I was told that we had three choices. Either we could use an electric collar, we could put him in with the tup, or we could put him in with an old ewe and a lamb. My farm manager was reluctant to do either of the latter two, because, as he rightly said, particularly with a lurcher, one strong kick on the ribcage would probably puncture the lung and that would be the end of the dog. So he used an electric collar sparingly, with the dial set to a low level, and I believe, and we hope, that sufficient discipline has been instilled into the dog—and the evidence shows that it has—and that, for the time being, the future should be satisfactory. If we had not used the electric collar, my dog Prospero would be dead—just like one of his predecessors, Samson. If it is a choice between the humane application of a small electric shock or killing the dog, there does not seem to be much argument about which is in the best interests of the dog. The crucial point was that made by my noble friend Lord Pearson of Rannoch. On such devices, there is a dial that determines the strength of the shock. It is clearly unacceptable to induce a charge such that it might seem that the dog is going to be electrocuted. It is simply a matter of ensuring that devices of this kind cannot give a charge greater than is appropriate and acceptable. If they are completely banned, you are throwing the proverbial baby out with the bathwater and you are probably condemning quite a lot of dogs to a premature death.