Petition · past parliament
Amend the Animal Welfare Act to make fatal dog-on-dog attacks a criminal offence
Rejected
15 signatures
What the petition asks
Thousands of innocent dogs are attacked every year by out of control dogs, often fatally. The pain, trauma and long term mental health impact on both dog (if it survives) and the owner cannot be stressed enough. Owners of attacking dogs are rarely held to account.
Amend the Animal Welfare Act. This amendment is the Animal Welfare (Responsibility for Dog Attacks) Bill informally known as Emilie's Law.
Under the Dangerous Dogs Act, attacks on humans, assistance dogs and guide dogs are covered but NOT pet dogs. This is a loophole which needs to be addressed. Under the law pet dogs are considered to be “chattels”. This amendment would give the police more powers to prosecute and the courts more power to impose heavier penalties.
Under the Dangerous Dogs Act, attacks on humans, assistance dogs and guide dogs are covered but NOT pet dogs. This is a loophole which needs to be addressed. Under the law pet dogs are considered to be “chattels”. This amendment would give the police more powers to prosecute and the courts more power to impose heavier penalties.
Why it was rejected
There was already a petition about this issue. Duplicates are rejected so signatures collect in one place.
You may wish to sign this petition which calls for a similar action:
Make dogs attacking other pets a specific criminal offence
Make dogs attacking other pets a specific criminal offence
Make dogs attacking other pets a specific criminal offence
Make dogs attacking other pets a specific criminal offence
Timeline
| 13 Jun 2023 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 15 Jun 2023 | Rejected by the Petitions Committee |
Key facts
Signatures
15
Status
Rejected
Rejected
15 Jun 2023
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.