⚠️ In the Name of Our Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II: A Grave Threat to Pedigree Dogs in the UK ⚠️ Help us Stop the IHA!

The proposed Innate Health Assessment Tool represents a significant and unprecedented risk to the future of pedigree dogs in the United Kingdom.

A wide range of breeds — including Bulldogs, Dachshunds, Corgis, naturally short-tailed dogs, and merle-patterned dogs across multiple breeds — may be unfairly disadvantaged, not due to demonstrable welfare concerns, neglect, or risk, but solely on the basis of physical characteristics.

This approach reflects the shortcomings of previous appearance-based and breed-focused regulatory measures, which UK experience has repeatedly shown to be ineffective.

 
Why this issue is of concern
The proposed assessment tool relies on broad, non-breed-specific criteria that:

Fail to recognise genetic diversity within pedigree breeds
Do not adequately distinguish between irresponsible breeding practices and responsible, health-tested breeding
Disregard advances in veterinary medicine and genetic science
Appear to have been developed without meaningful consultation with recognised UK breed clubs, ethical breeders, veterinary geneticists, or subject-matter experts
 
Anticipated consequences
If implemented in its current form, the proposed framework is likely to result in:

Healthy, well-cared-for companion animals being unfairly penalised
Responsible owners facing disproportionate enforcement measures
Families, including children, losing valued companion animals
A reduction in genetic diversity, placing the long-term viability of certain breeds at risk
Such outcomes cannot reasonably be characterised as promoting animal welfare.

 
Evidence from existing legislation
The United Kingdom’s experience with breed-specific and appearance-based enforcement, including under the Dangerous Dogs Act and inconsistent local authority interpretations, demonstrates that such measures do not prevent irresponsible breeding or ownership.

Instead, they tend to:

Drive breeding practices underground
Penalise compliant and responsible owners
Divert limited enforcement resources away from genuine welfare concerns
Effective animal welfare policy must be evidence-based, proportionate, and informed by relevant expertise, rather than shaped by public perception, media pressure, or hastily introduced measures intended to signal action rather than deliver outcomes.

 
A matter of principle and heritage
Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was widely recognised for her lifelong commitment to dogs, responsible breeding, and the preservation of historic British breeds. Policies that risk undermining the future of pedigree dogs — without robust scientific justification or expert consensus — appear inconsistent with those values.

We therefore urge policymakers to reconsider this approach in order to protect:

The welfare of dogs
The future of healthy British pedigree breeds
Fair, effective, and evidence-led animal welfare legislation in the United Kingdom
Action is required now, before irreversible damage is done.

📢 We respectfully call on the public to sign and share this petition.