Ban on docked tail dogs would be 'a real tragedy'

A dog owner who adopted her pets from Italy via a rescue charity says a ban on dogs with docked tails from entering the UK would be "a real tragedy".

In December 2025, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) announced dogs with docked - partially shortened - tails would be banned from entering the UK.

Rachael Hyde from Hucclecote in Gloucestershire, adopted Achilles, an Italian Spinone, in March 2025, and is calling for an exemption to be made.

Spinone Overseas For Adoption, the charity which brought Achilles over to the UK, said banning dogs "as imports for rescue is unfair". Defra said exemptions may be made at a later date.

The new legislation is part of the Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Act.

According to the Italian Spinone Club Of Great Britain, the breed often have their tails docked while working in Italy, where they are used as gundogs, to prevent them being injured when flushing birds out of hedges.

Achilles, who has a docked tail, was found in a locked room in Tuscany, four days after his owner died. After health checks, he was brought to the UK to live with Hyde and her husband, David.

Hyde said Achilles is gentle, as, she added, are many Spinoni, despite being gundogs.

"A lot of the dogs don't like the sound of the gun... so they're turned away, or abandoned because they've failed at being a good gundog," Hyde said.

"If [adoptions] are stopped, then the dogs will just be abandoned in kennels and either shot or euthanised."

Sarah-Jane Newton, president of SOFA, said if the Act does not include an exemption for rescue dogs like Achilles, the charity will not be able to continue and some dogs in Italy "will face a very bleak future".

"It's a very worrying time for Spinone lovers as without an exemption we'll have to shut up shop - and hundreds of abandoned dogs will no longer be able to find a new life in the UK," Newton said.

SOFA has set up a petition, asking Parliament to include an exemption in the Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Act for "registered charities and approved, responsible rescue organisations to rehome adult, disease tested dogs, who were previously docked as working hunting dogs abroad".

The petition has been signed by more than 22,000 people. To be considered for debate in Parliament, it must receive 100,000.

The Act received Royal Assent in late 2025, making it law, although the ban has not yet been enforced.

It set out "plans to protect treasured pets and much-loved wildlife across the country", Defra said, including ending puppy smuggling and trail hunting.

A spokesperson for Defra said: "We will work with stakeholders to consider appropriate exemptions as we deliver the relevant regulations."

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