I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time." The Minister of State and I both know that Ireland is a nation of dog lovers. We love our dogs and we love our pups but the reality is many people in Ireland would be absolutely horrified if they knew what the back story of those pups was. They would be disgusted to know that those pups came from a nightmare situation the pup's mother is probably still living through. It is where a pregnant female dog can be bred over and over again in horrific conditions that are dirty, cramped and cold, often with not enough water or light, and where she is matted, covered in sores and not getting any care, love or human interaction. That dog is just seen as this production line to pump out pup after pup. These terrified mother dogs are breeding absolutely terrified pups. What happens in that instance is not only does the mother dog have horrific health problems but the pups have horrific health problems and often have behavioural issues. Those pups are sold to families who are so looking forward to having this gorgeous little bundle of joy in their home. Instead, they get a dog, a little pup, that has never been socialised and may never have had much human interaction because these pups are often fed by automatic machines. This pup then becomes a difficulty and a real challenge for these families, one they are sometimes not able to deal with. It is a conveyor belt of misery and it has huge animal welfare concerns. Puppy farms are a profit model gone absolutely mad. It is a real example of an industry that can gain a huge amount of money at the expense of vulnerable animals but where there is not sufficient oversight of regulations. Rescues are left to pick up the pieces of this and they are exhausted. They are tired and finding it so hard to deal with the number of pups and dogs that are being abandoned at the moment. These are all run by volunteers. They are the ones who get the mother dogs who arrive matted and terrified into their care. They are the ones who get the puppies who are too old to be cute any longer and therefore the breeder cannot sell them, so they dump them. They are the ones who get the puppies that are brought in by families because they were given up due to health or behavioural issues. It is all down to a lack of regulation. Many people will be very surprised and shocked to learn that, at the moment, there is no cap on the number of female dogs that can be in a puppy farm. The legislation envisages there are over 300. It would be incredible to have that many breeding females and their pups on-site. Not only that, there is no mandated number of staff required to be there to look after those pups. We can really see where the difficulties set in. Female dogs can have up to six litters in their lifetime. Dogs as young as four years old, when they are only puppies themselves, can be forced to have their own pups. The dog welfare Bill the Social Democrats are bringing to Second Stage today strengthens the 2010 Act by capping the number of breeding females on-site at 30. It introduces a 16-month minimum age and eight-year maximum age for breeding; a maximum of one litter per year per breeding female; a maximum of four litters per breeding female during her lifetime; a minimum age of ten weeks for pup separation; and mandates a one to ten staff-to-animal ratio for proper care. It also outlaws surgical artificial insemination and other harmful practices. This is a modest Bill. We are not coming into this Chamber saying every single puppy farm in the country should be shut down. We want them to be properly regulated and we want the welfare of dogs and pups to be at the centre of this. This Bill will go a long way to ensuring that we are caring for those dogs properly. I am interested to hear what the Minister of State has to say. I hope that the Government can work with us on this. It is something that has huge support from the public and that they really want to see happen. I thank Dog Law Ireland for its support for this Bill, as well as Dogs Trust and Wicklow Animal Welfare, which I have worked with very closely over the course of this. I also give a shout-out to all those rescues who put in so many hours looking after our animals.

Sentiment score: -0.01

She is talking so much rubbish.

Sentiment score: 0.00

I thank everybody who contributed today. It is clear that this Bill is supported by most Members of the House. Most people can understand the need for it and the urgency with it. That is why, when the Minister of State spoke initially about a 12-month delay, I was concerned because that would mean that, over those 12 months, another 100,000 pups will be born in Ireland, many of them in horrific conditions. I understand the need to go through processes and I know a number of consultations are taking place. It is really important that the voices of dog rescues, vets and those involved in looking after dogs are heard. I understand the need for those processes but I want the timeframe to be expedited. I thank the Minister of State because I have just received notification from him that he is prepared to move to a nine-month timeframe, which would be sufficient to get through those consultations. I am really pleased with that and the Social Democrats will accept it. We want to work closely with the Government on this issue, which we are passionate about. It is important, on issues like this, that the Social Democrats work constructively with the Government. People want to see action on this issue, regardless of which party they support. Whether it is the Social Democrats, Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael or Independents or whoever else, it does not matter because people want to see this actioned. I thank the Minister of State for his confirmation that a nine-month timeframe will be set on the Bill and that he will work closely with me and my party. I have some other suggestions. I think it would be appropriate at this stage to see if additional funding can be provided for rescues that are dealing with what is a crisis at the moment and to examine the possibility of establishing a special committee to get this Bill across the line as soon as possible. I thank the Minister of State very much for the change and I look forward to working with him. I hope to hear from him, the Minister, Deputy Heydon, and indeed the Department shortly about next steps on how we can progress this Bill.

Sentiment score: 0.32