A new bill which pushes for a minimum 10 month prison sentence for dog thieves has passed its first stage in the Dail.
The bill, brought forward by Aontu leader Peadar Toibin, was conceptualised after the rise in dog thefts during Covid-19 lockdowns. He argued that pets play a crucial role within family life and that this status should be fully recognised in law.
An Garda Siochana reported a 16 per cent increase in dog related thefts in 2020 alone. Many family pets were stolen by criminal gangs, with several reports circulating of animals being shipped off to puppy farms in the UK for financial gain.
