Platinum award win in RSPCA PawPrints Awards
The awards celebrate local authorities, housing providers and emergency services who have gone the extra mile in caring for animals in their communities.
The awards recognise excellent practises in animal welfare. They are judged across five categories:
- Stray dog services
- Animal activity licensing
- Housing policy
- Contingency/emergency planning
- Kennelled dog welfare
Platinum is awarded to organisations that have earned gold in one category for five or more years in a row. This award underlines our sustained excellence in animal welfare.
Lead Councillor for Regulatory and Democratic Services, Cllr Merel Rehorst-Smith, said: "This is a tremendous achievement by our licensing team. Our officers work tirelessly to make sure our standards remain high when it comes to the welfare of animals. This award is a tribute to their consistent hard work.
"We inspect licensed businesses on a regular basis to make sure they meet the required high standards of care. The business must have related experience or qualifications in looking after pets.
"Our residents play a big part in animal protection too. We encourage them to let us know if they become aware of an unlicensed business. Unlicensed businesses are unlikely to have valid insurance."
It's important that residents, as animal owners, are aware of the animal activities that must be licensed. The activities that need to be licensed are:
- boarding dogs in your home
- providing day-care for dogs
- boarding dogs in kennels
- boarding cats
- selling animals as pets
- breeding dogs
- hiring out horses
- keeping a Zoo
- keeping a dangerous wild animal (defined by a Schedule in the Act)
- keeping, or training animals for exhibition
Lee Gingell, public affairs manager at the RSPCA, said: "We are thrilled to recognise Guildford Borough Council with the platinum animal welfare policies and procedures award in this year's RSPCA PawPrints Awards.
"Their commitment to animal welfare is truly commendable and reflects the high standards that the PawPrints awards aim to celebrate. By winning this award, Guildford Borough Council has demonstrated outstanding dedication to protecting, promoting and enhancing animal welfare, and we hope their achievements inspire others to strive for excellence in this vital area."
More information about animal licensing is available on the Guildford Borough Council website.
Published on 5 November