Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)
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959. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the enforcement of the 2015 legislation to microchip dogs that is in place; the fines and penalties that have been imposed since the legislation came into force; the reason some pounds are still not microchipping dogs three years after the legislation was enacted; and the details of the new databases in view of concerns that the new database is not approved (details supplied). [35580/18]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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The available evidence about numbers of dogs chipped indicates a very high level of compliance.

The focus of enforcement by authorised officers operating under the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 has mainly been on the wholesale sector and dogs being exported. Legal cases have mainly been taken against owners of unchipped dogs where this has occurred in conjunction with other issues, in particular animal welfare offences.

Many of the dogs in dog pounds are unwanted dogs who have been abandoned by their owners and unfortunately such individuals may not have taken a responsible approach to ensuring their dog’s traceability.

The operation of dog pounds and dog wardens remains the responsibility of Local Authorities. Many dog pounds have engaged with microchipping as they understand it is the most effective way to ensure smooth reunification and therefore I would encourage all Local Authorities to adopt best practice in this area.

The complaint raised in respect of an unapproved database is being investigated.