A spirit of cooperation on imported dogs?

The COVID-19 crisis and associated travel restrictions have led to an 80% reduction in pet travel from the UK. It has, however, had remarkably little impact on the importation of rescue dogs and puppies from abroad, which has seen an upturn during the crisis. Demand for puppies and rescue dogs has risen and attention has turned to foreign breeders and charities for new pets. Given the long distances and stress endured by puppies imported from abroad, it is easy to conclude that this is to be discouraged, and that puppies purchased from a reputable source in the UK. A petition for this is currently being submitted to the Government, which I would encourage everyone to sign (https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/326261). The importation of rescue dogs from abroad however, is a more complex issue. Many vets including myself feel very strongly for biosecurity and welfare reasons that dogs should be rehomed in their country of origin. With importation comes the risk of introduction of exotic pathogens, such as Leishmania, heartworm and Rhipicephalus ticks. For these reasons, ESCCAP UK & Ireland strongly supports the rehoming of dogs in their country of origin, and would encourage people looking for a new dog to consider rescuing one here in the UK.