Dog training - use of devices: report

1. Introduction

The Scottish Animal Welfare Commission (SAWC) was established by the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission Regulations 2020, made under section 36 of the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006. The function of providing advice on the protection of wildlife under section 23 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 has been assigned by Ministerial declaration.

Further information on the Commission, including reports and minutes of previous meetings, is published when available on the SAWC home page.

SAWC’s terms of reference are to focus on the welfare of wild and companion animals in Scotland while also providing scientific and ethical advice to the Scottish Government. The Commission will only consider areas that are within the normal current remit of the UK Animal Welfare Committee and the UK Zoo Expert Committee where these relate to the overall responsibility to consider the welfare needs of sentient animals in all areas of Scottish Government policy or at the specific request of the Scottish Ministers. The Commission will not consider matters that are reserved to the UK Government, including the welfare of animals used in scientific procedures.

The Commission, which is independent of the Scottish Government, provides written reports and opinions to Scottish Ministers giving practical recommendations based on scientific evidence and ethical considerations on the welfare of sentient animals in Scotland, and the impact of policy on welfare.

The Scottish Animal Welfare Commission Dog Training Working Group was established at the March 2021 SAWC plenary meeting. The Working Group remit was to consider the matter of aversive training aids within the wider context of dog training and to make recommendations to Scottish Ministers on possible future legislation or guidance on dog training and dog training aids, as noted in Guidance on Dog Training Aids review, June 2021¹ . It was agreed that in addition to making recommendations regarding training methods and aids, the Working Group would consider the current state of dog training in Scotland.

Regarding aversive training aids, the Commission prioritised review of the use of handheld remote-controlled training devices (e-collars); this issue has been the subject of previous scrutiny by the UK government and the devolved governments in Scotland and Wales. Following consultation, a report on the use of handheld remote-controlled training devices (e-collars) in dog training was published in April 2023 ² . That report explicitly did not consider the use of electronic collars that are bark- or noise-activated, those used in containment systems, nor electronic collars that produce noise, vibration or noxious spray.

This report addresses the use of devices in the training of dogs, other than handheld remote-controlled training devices (e-collars).