Mr Blair’s release was critical of his department, pet owners said. They had complained that some public servants had a "hidden agenda" of trying to end pet ownership and any kind of pet breeding in NSW. After listening to the feedback from stakeholders, Mr Blair said he had directed his department to go back and develop a new way forward. NSW Minister for Primary Industries Niall Blair. It would be led by a newly created role of NSW Chief Animal Welfare Officer. Mr Blair also said that the department would review advisory committees on animal welfare issues, which had provided advice on the new standards and guidelines.

This review would ensure "they're structured properly, and most importantly, meeting community expectations", he said. In his statement, Mr Blair said stakeholders had said the "draft standards and guidelines [S&Gs] proposed were missing the mark”. “I want the Department of Primary Industries [DPI] to start again. I have asked them to work from the ground up and to make sure we are clearer about the objectives we are trying to meet,” Mr Blair said. “The draft S&Gs aimed to improve welfare outcomes for pets. Despite DPI’s best intentions, they acknowledge that the drafts, as they were presented, would have had unintended consequences for some pet owners, breeders and traders. “My department is committed to a renewed approach and the new Chief Animal Welfare Officer will drive engagement and ensure a meaningful discussion is had with all stakeholders." Pet groups said the abandonment of the new guidelines would conveniently avoid it becoming an election issue.

"It seems the underlying agenda is to stop people owning animals - and pets - outright," said Michael Donnelly, a representative of the Herpetocultural Co-operative of NSW. Like other pet owners and breeders, he was "very, very pleased" with the changes and glad that the minister had listened. Loading "This has proven that he has listened," he said. And it had shown that "you can convince a minister that a decision by the department they oversee can be wrong. And they can't be signed off without some form of consideration of the community as a whole.” But Mr Donnelly warned that the agenda to prevent pet keeping and breeding was unlikely to be dropped, and had been put on hold until after the NSW election in March.

Under the original proposal, pet owners and breeders who sold, traded, donated or advertised the sale of an animal would be classified as "pet shop owners" and subject to onerous health, safety and training rules. The changes were in response to the parliamentary inquiry into puppy farms, but were said to be a "massive overreach" particularly as they extended onerous regulations to all pets, not just dogs and cats. Pure-breed dog owners had said that, if the changes were implemented, they could have destroyed a beloved hobby for many Australians. They were so alarmed by the draft proposal that 22,000 people participated in a Dogs NSW meeting streamed live to discuss the rules. A spokesperson for industry group Dogs NSW applauded the minister for making the changes and the decision to create the role of Animal Welfare Officer. Mr Blair's office said the new role would better enable the animal welfare programs within NSW DPI to increase focus on "ongoing reform to improve standards around animal welfare, as well as working with key stakeholders to ensure balance in relation to appropriate welfare standards".