Done Deal, Adverts Gumtree and others are being urged to ban the term “FREE TO GOOD HOME” on their advertising platforms to deter dog baiters and other such persons from procuring vulnerable companion pets for cruel purposes.

Dog Baiters regularly “source” pets on various internet advertising platforms used by unsuspecting advertisers looking to rehome companion pets. As a result, the term “FREE TO GOOD HOME” has already been “blacklisted” by PAAG, in the UK, however unfortunately not so by IPAAG.

DoneDeal and Adverts are both owned by Distilled Sch and are both members of IPAAG. Their parent Company is Adevinta based in Norway. Donedeal have 85% of the market share in relation to Animal Advertisements. Daily, there are over 5,500 Ads on DoneDeal for the sale or supply of Companion Pets & Equines. However, DoneDeal and Adverts regularly fail to comply with current Animal Welfare Legislation, IPAAG Minimum Standards and their own Terms and Conditions.  Gumtree are also equally remiss, however seem to be answerable to “no one”.

We demand the following actions from all Advertising Platforms

• Blacklist the phrase “FREE TO GOOD HOME” we believe this is the easiest and most important step for these advertising platforms to implement.
• Introduce a minimum charge of €30 per cat/kitten /companion pet and recommend the Seller provide the following  minimum vet care: flea & worm treatment and educate the Seller how to conduct a Homecheck to ensure the safety of their companion pet in its new home.
• Create a pop up for any post under the “animal” category. The pop up should require the Seller to tick boxes to confirm specific important requirements before being permitted to compose their Ad. (This information includes: age of the animal, country of origin, species, unique microchip number (if a dog), DBE Number if the Seller is a registered Dog Breeding Establishment, DAFM Pet Seller Registration Number if the Seller is a Registered Pet Seller. This specific information should then be automatically populated into the Ad itself. There should be a hyperlink to a user-friendly list of what information the Seller is legally required to add and a hyperlink to the relevant legislation. 

An example of a pop up to include:

• Do not post animals for FREE on this site
• Finding a quality home for your pet can be difficult, contact your local rescue if you need help (we would like to see a hyper link added here to TAGSrescue.ie so that the Seller can easily locate and contact a Rescue local to them.
• Ask for identification from a potential new owner when reuniting a lost pet to its owner
• Don’t just give your pet to the first person who calls, try to match your pet with the most suitable Buyer/Adopter.
• Give clear and detailed descriptions when posting in Lost and Found
• More information can be found on the IPAAG website www.ipaag.ie  and have specific links for specific information , NOT just to the whole website.
• Please carefully review the full Terms and Conditions here

An example of a tick box form should look like:

• Is your animal over 8 weeks of age?
• Age of animal
•  Country of Origin
• Vaccinated (1st) or (1st and 2nd)
• Wormed and flea treated
• Neutered
• Microchipped (Y/N) NUMBER

Any Advertiser who sells or supplies 6 or more pets in a calendar year is required register with the DAFM Pet Sellers Register and display their registration number on their ad. Noncompliance should result in the immediate removal of the ad.

No ad for any animal should allowed go “live” until it is reviewed by a suitably qualified human who has a working knowledge of species specific animal welfare legislation and who is conversant with current legislation pertaining to the sale or supply of that type of animal.

With the above measures, going forward, we are confident that this will deter Dog Baiters and other such persons from accessing these sites to procure vulnerable companion pets for cruel purposes.

Please save vulnerable companion pets from falling into the wrong hands by signing this petition.

Thank you!