This article is more than 10 years old

This article is more than 10 years old

An inquiry set up to examine whether the way pedigree dogs are bred damages their health has criticised negligent management on puppy farms in the UK as a "major welfare issue", along with inbreeding in purebred animals.

The report published today by Prof Sir Patrick Bateson, president of the Zoological Society of London, also condemns fashions that prize certain extreme physical characteristics responsible for health problems.

The inquiry was set up after a BBC documentary in 2008 claimed pedigree dogs were being bred and shown with debilitating genetic diseases. It has recommended changes in the law to ensure every puppy is microchipped before being sold and an independent advisory council to tackle inherited disease, "extreme conformation" and inbreeding.

Speaking in London today, Bateson, of Cambridge University, said: "Many breeders exercise high standards of welfare but negligent management on puppy farms is a major welfare issue, as is inbreeding in purebred dogs. Fashions for extreme conformations are also a cause of welfare problems."

After a 10-month inquiry funded by the Kennel Club and leading animal charity the Dogs Trust, Bateson's report called for a computer-based system to collect anonymous data about breeds from veterinary practices and for the veterinary profession to support enforcement authorities, help educate the public and lead a shift towards a preventative approach to dog health.

His recommendations include:

• A duty of care on breeders for the health of parents and offspring and the setting up of accredited breeder schemes.

• Health checks that allow buyers to view dogs with a parent before a sale.

• New regulations on breeding and sales of dogs and better welfare enforcement on licensed dog breeding premises.

• A campaign by animal welfare organisations to educate the public in buying dogs.

• The Dangerous Dogs Act being amended to apply to all dogs that have been shown to be dangerous, rather than to specified breeds, and to address the problem of dogs being bred and reared specifically as weapons for fighting.

The RSPCA pulled out of last year's Crufts dog show over concerns about animal welfare.

The animal charity called for new measures to tackle disability, deformity and disease among pedigree breeds.