Petition to ban small enclosures and wheels

[Maz]

Another petition here. It perhaps could have been worded more specifically but I've signed it anyway. This is Uk only but if there are enough signatures it will go before Parliament.

Archived Petition: Ban the sale of inappropriately sized enclosures and wheels for small animals

We think the Government should introduce minimum enclosure and wheel sizes for small animals and ban the sale of any that do not fit this criteria. Travel enclosures and carriers should still be available, however.

petition.parliament.uk

 

[Hammie Heart]

Oh... I was going to sign but I'm not a UK resident!

 

[Maz]

Sorry!

 

[RainbowBrite]

Signed.

 

[Hammie Heart]

It's OK! I made one, but instead of just the UK, it's worldwide! Find it in the "Anything Else Hamster" tab

 

[Maz]

Bump. Note - this petition is Uk only but if there are enough signatures it will go before Parliament.

 

[Hammie Heart]

Yeah, I saw that

 

[Emx93]

I'm not sure if it's the same but I came across this one today

Archived Petition: Ban the sale of inappropriately sized enclosures and wheels for small animals

We think the Government should introduce minimum enclosure and wheel sizes for small animals and ban the sale of any that do not fit this criteria. Travel enclosures and carriers should still be available, however.

petition.parliament.uk

 

[Maz]

It seems to be the same one It's up to 2,500 signatures already - a lot more than when I signed a few days ago

 

[Hammie Heart]

It's nice to know that people care

 

[Steve]

Well done for starting / finding these petitions, would be great if some good comes from them.
I've just signed and It's doing well by the looks of it, up to just over 3,300 signatures

 

[Steve]

Hi All,
Just a quick update with some good news. The petition has reached 10k signatures meaning the government will respond. I have no idea when that will be, but I will continue to keep an eye on it and will let you know if I see anything.

 

[Maz]

That's brilliant! Thanks for updating Steve. It's unusual for petitions to get that many signatures! It must have been shared widely.

 

[Hank]

That is excellent news

 

[elusive]

That really is a great achievement.

 

[Hammie Heart]

Hip Hip Hooray! Time to celebrate!!!

 

[Maz]

I think one reason it may have got so many signatures is it’s not specifically just about hamsters but all small animals and rodents. Which is a good thing.

 

[Hammie Heart]

*Me not reading that part and just noticing that it's only for UK citizens*

That probably is why And it is a good thing!

 

[Maz]

Anyone who signed this petition will presumably have received the Government’s response by email. But this is the response

Government responded:

Existing statutory guidance requires that enclosures sold with animals are a suitable size for the animal purchased, prioritising its welfare. We have no wider plans to set mandatory sizes.

Animals should always be housed in enclosures of a suitable size to accommodate their welfare needs and natural behaviours, as well as providing adequate space for exercise and enrichment.
The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 (LAIA Regulations) set strict animal welfare standards that commercial sellers of pets, such as breeders and pet shops, must adhere to. One provision of the LAIA Regulations is that sellers must ensure that any equipment and accessories being sold with an animal are suitable for the animal. Owners should be advised to purchase enclosures and accessories, such as wheels, which are more generous in size than minima set out in statutory guidance. These can be found in Parts E to H of the statutory guidance for Selling animals as pets licensing:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/animal-activities-licensing-guidance-for-local-authorities/selling-animals-as-pets-licensing-statutory-guidance-for-local-authorities--2
In addition, commercial sellers are required to provide those purchasing animals with information on how to care for them. This includes advice on feeding, housing, handling, husbandry, the life expectancy of its species, the provision of suitable accessories and veterinary care. We will continue to support efforts by pet sellers and animal welfare groups to educate owners on the welfare needs of their pets.
Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, it is an offence for owners and keepers either to cause an animal unnecessary suffering or to fail to provide for its welfare. Anyone failing to ensure that their animal’s welfare needs are met may face an unlimited fine or be sent to prison for up to six months, or both. If anyone has any concerns about the welfare of an animal that is being kept in unacceptable conditions, they should report the matter to the relevant local authority who have the necessary powers to investigate.
Thank you for raising this important matter. We are committed to a brighter future for animals.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Click this link to view the response online:

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/655081?reveal_response=yes

The Petitions Committee will take a look at this petition and its response. They can press the government for action and gather evidence. If this petition reaches 100,000 signatures, the Committee will consider it for a debate.

The Committee is made up of 11 MPs, from political parties in government and in opposition. It is entirely independent of the Government. Find out more about the Committee: https://petition.parliament.uk/help#petitions-committee

Thanks,
The Petitions team
UK Government and Parliament

It mentions minimum sizes in statutory guidance and links the statutory guidance - parts E to H are for small animals. It’s worth clicking on that link and reading it - it’s a long document but I picked out a couple of things from it. The minimum sizes it mentions seem to just refer to commercial sellers and seems to rely on commercial sellers to recommend larger sizes to owners. So there doesn’t appear to be any statutory minimum size for owners (if I’ve read it correctly) but owners are obliged to comply with the animal welfare act to meet the animal’s welfare needs. At the moment those welfare needs only seem to be from pet charity guidance (Blue Cross, PDSA and Wpod Green).

To me it seems the statutory guidance isn’t clear enough for minimum cage size for long term housing so it would need 100,000 signatures to have that debated in Parliament - so more sharing of the petition needed!

These are a couple of quotes from the link - but it is worth reading the whole thing as there is a lot more - it says larger sizes may be needed for long term care but doesn’t say what those are - so it’s vague on that.

“Enclosures must be appropriate to the size of the species. They must adjust in size as the animal grows. Animals kept communally may need to be separated or need larger enclosures if there is any change in group dynamics.

Whilst animals are offered for sale, the business is considered a short-term transitional holding facility. Because of this, it may be acceptable to have enclosures of smaller sizes than those intended for long term care. These sizes are outlined for each taxonomic group within the individual schedules and take into account specific stocking density.

The transitional period is to be no more than 3 months from the date of arrival

Minimum enclosure sizes for small rodents

Type of animals	Area in cm² for 1 to 4 animals	Area in cm² for 5 animals	Area in cm² for 6 animals	Area in cm² for 7 animals	Area in cm² for 8 animals	Area in cm² for 9 animals	Area in cm² for 10 animals	Minimum cage height (cm)	Minimum cage depth (cm)
Gerbils	680	790	900	1,000	1,113	1,240	1,350	30	25
Rats	1,350	1,570	1,800	2,020	2,225	2,470	2,700	30	28
Degus	2,250	2,630	3,000	3,380	3,750	4,130	4,500	30	30
Chinchillas	2,500	3,750	5,000	6,250	7,500	8750	10,000	45	45

Minimum enclosure sizes for small rodents - higher standards

Type of animal	Area in cm² for 1 to 4 animals	Area in cm² for 5 animals	Area in cm² for 6 animals	Area in cm² for 7 animals	Area in cm² for 8 animals	Area in cm² for 9 animals	Area in cm² for 10animals	Minimum cage height (cm)	Minimum cage depth (cm)
Dwarf hamsters, mice	750	1,000	1,250	1,500	1,750	2,000	2,250	25	25
Syrian hamster (1 only)*	750	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	25	25
Rats	1,800	2,400	3,000	3,600	4,200	4,800	5,400	30	28
Gerbil	1,250	1,250	1,500	1,750	2,000	2,250	2,500	30	25
Degus (2) to a maximum of 6 animals	2,500	6,250	7,500	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	45	45
Chinchillas (2)	2,500	6,250	7,500	8,750	10,000	11,250	12,500	45	45
Chinchillas (3 to 4)	5,000	Not applicable	Not applicable

 

[Hammie Heart]

I... think that this is amazing. I REALLY wish I could sign!!! Sorry