Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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560. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 335 of 12 July 2016, if dogs seized on welfare rather than control grounds become the responsibility of the local authority. [24694/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Control of Dogs Acts 1986 to 2010 place statutory responsibility for dog control on local authorities. The enforcement of welfare standards for all animals, including dogs seized under the Control of Dogs Acts, is a matter for the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine under the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 and my Department has no direct role in this regard. Local authorities have the power to appoint dog wardens, provide dog shelters, seize dogs, impose on-the-spot fines and take court proceedings against owners. Some local authorities may enter into agreements with the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ISPCA) or a person or organisation connected with animal welfare to provide these services. The rehoming policy in respect of dogs in local authority shelters for dogs seized, accepted or detained for the purposes of the Control of Dogs Acts 1986 to 2010 is a matter for each local authority and I have no function in the matter.