GAPS in Jersey’s animal-welfare laws are limiting the ability of charities and authorities to step in before animals suffer, the Island’s leading animal welfare charity has warned.
JSPCA chief executive Pam Aubert said that weaknesses and ambiguities in the current legal framework have already led to “poor outcomes for animals” – and risk continuing to do so unless addressed.
She was writing to the Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel as part of its review of the Draft Animal Welfare (Jersey) Law.
While welcoming the overall direction of reform, Ms Aubert warned that unclear drafting and over-reliance on future secondary legislation could leave frontline agencies hamstrung.
“It would be remiss not to note that gaps in existing legislation have, at times, limited the ability of agencies and charities to protect animal welfare effectively,” she said, warning that animals may continue to “fall through the cracks” if problems are not fixed.
The JSPCA chief executive called for “greater clarity” around legal ownership of an animal and day-to-day responsibility, warning that the charity regularly encounters cases where unclear law prevents decisive action.
“By way of example, if a dog walker allows a dog off-lead when the owner has expressly advised against it and an incident occurs, it should be clear how responsibility would fall,” explained Ms Aubert.
“Greater clarity in this area will support consistent enforcement and avoid uncertainty for owners, professionals and charities.”
The JSPCA chief executive also raised concerns about the lack of a clear legal definition or a set time period after which an uncollected animal is formally deemed abandoned.
“At present, a lack of statutory clarity can leave animals in a prolonged ‘in limbo’ position, where ownership is uncertain and timely rehoming is harder to progress, despite the animal being effectively abandoned in practice,” said Ms Aubert.
She also called for the law to explicitly recognise mental suffering.
“In many welfare situations, psychological harm may be the primary impact, and clear recognition within the drafting would assist inspectors and courts to intervene earlier and apply the legislation consistently,” she added.
Elsewhere, the submission highlights loopholes around so-called “working dogs”, exemptions for fishing that leave fish welfare largely unaddressed, and the lack of clear controls on breeding animals with extreme physical traits that cause lifelong health problems.
