Welcome
This site is a beta, which means it's a work in progress and we'll be adding more to it over the next few weeks. Your feedback helps us make things better, so please let us know what you think.
Quickly exit this site by pressing the Escape key Leave this site
This site is a beta, which means it's a work in progress and we'll be adding more to it over the next few weeks. Your feedback helps us make things better, so please let us know what you think.
This site is a beta, which means it's a work in progress and we'll be adding more to it over the next few weeks. Your feedback helps us make things better, so please let us know what you think.
Wildlife and animal crime can be a complex area to understand.
To find out what wildlife crime is, go to our wildlife crime page.
Crimes involving animals that aren’t wildlife crimes, include:
Livestock worrying is a criminal offence and comes under the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953.
‘Worrying’ is where a dog attacks or chases livestock causing injury or suffering.
This isn’t just a threat to a farmer or land owner’s livelihood, it’s also a dangerous situation for the animals involved, and could lead to more risk if the animals get onto the road.
A farmer is allowed to kill the dog if it’s worrying their livestock.
Always keep your dog under control around other animals and if you see a dog on the loose worrying animals, call 101.
Grazing animals can be an easy target especially in remote rural locations.
Remember, a horse passport is a legal requirement. You can find out how to apply for one here.
Report livestock theft to us either online or by calling 101.
Fox hunting is illegal; trail and drag hunting (where the hunt follows an artificial scent laid out in a trail) is legal. Dogs can be used legally as part of a trail or drag hunt.
There are exemptions under the Hunting Act 2004 which allow for wild animals (including foxes) to be ‘humanely’ killed. Dogs can be legally used to ‘flush’ a fox from cover so it can be shot.
It is an offence to:
If you think someone has broken the ban on fox hunting then that's a wildlife crime and you need to let us know, either online or by calling 101.
Animal cruelty is when someone doesn’t care for or deliberately hurts an animal.
It can include anything from physical violence, to deliberate mental distress or neglect, for example not feeding or cleaning an animal.
If you see, or suspect, that a person may be treating an animal badly, whether this is physical violence, neglect or any other form of cruelty, you should report this to the RSPCA’s 24-hour cruelty line.
You can contact them on 0300 1234 999. The call will cost the same as any call to a UK landline number.
We work with the RSPCA to investigate cases of animal cruelty.
It’s an offence to let a dog be dangerously out of control whether that’s in public or private.
A dog is considered to be out of control if it:
A court could also decide that your dog is dangerously out of control if:
Please note, a farmer is allowed to kill your dog if it’s worrying their livestock.
If you see a dog loose or seemingly out of control, please tell us by calling 101.
In the UK, it’s against the law to own certain types of dog. These are the:
It’s also against the law to:
Whether your dog is a banned type depends on what it looks like, rather than its breed or name.
You can find more information about banned dogs here.
If you think someone has or is breeding banned dogs, please report it to us, either online or by calling 101.
If you're deaf or hard of hearing, use our textphone service on 18001 101
Find more information and services covering animals and pets: