Alliance establishes itself as the largest EU network of dog and cat welfare organisations

Today (9th July), the EU Dog & Cat Alliance welcomed its 50th member organisation – the Argos Animal Welfare Society from Greece. The Alliance now represents 50 dog and cat welfare organisations from 17 EU Member States.

The EU Dog & Cat Alliance was launched in October 2014 after concerns that there are around 61 million owned dogs and 66 million owned cats in the European Union but little EU legislation to protect them. There is a wide variation in national legislation on dog and cat breeding and trade across EU countries, and cross-border activities can have a huge impact on human and animal health and welfare as well as consumer protection. The Alliance was formed at a crucial time to call for EU actions to protect these animals.

Since its launch, the Alliance has met with key decision makers in Brussels including the European Commission, national government representations and Members of the European Parliament. It has also published a National Legislation Report to provide important information on the current legislation in all 28 of the EU’s Member States. This ground-breaking report was the first of its kind and provides much needed evidence as to why EU legislation on the breeding and trade of dogs and cats is needed.

Together with the Parliament Magazine, the Alliance will hold its first event in the European Parliament on 22nd September this year. The event will be hosted by Nicola Caputo MEP and the speakers will include Andrea Gavinelli, Head of the Animal Welfare Unit in the European Commission’s Directorate General for Health and Food Safety.

Laura Vallance, Chair of the EU Dog & Cat Alliance, said:

“We have been delighted with the positive response to the EU Dog & Cat Alliance and the number of organisations that have joined us to call for EU action for dogs and cats. Just nine months after we launched, the Alliance has already had several successes such as our ground-breaking National Legislation Report. Our first event in the European Parliament in September will provide another crucial opportunity for us to engage with key EU policy makers.”

“We are committed to building a better Europe for dogs and cats. With the huge amount of interest in the Alliance continuing, we look forward to welcoming further members on board.”

More information about the EU Dog & Cat Alliance and Parliament Magazine reception in the European Parliament can be found here.

Organisations wishing to join the Alliance can find more information here.