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I've written a complaint letter - Feedback/improvements/corrections required!

Firstly, a huge THANKYOU to Snouter for all your help with this :thumb::thumb:

Some of you may remember this thread: http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/showthread.php?t=246653

Writing letters is not exactly my strong point! But I've had a lot of help with this one, just not sure it all makes sense/ flows properly so would anyone mind having a look?

To Whom it may concern,


I am writing to inform you about my recent visit to the following pet shop.

Some pet shop
In a town
In England

I am deeply concerned about the welfare of the small animals within the store and I believe there to be several breaches of The Pet Animals Act, 1951 which I will explain below.

2.8 The range of behavioural opportunities for mammals should be increased by enriching the environment with accessories.. I noticed Giant breed rabbits being kept in aviarys outside, they had very little bedding, and absolutely no toys. All they had was the top half of a plastic pet carrier, which I also noticed were covered in Ceacotrophs. These are a very good indication of an inadequate diet, and very poor hygeine
2.11 Animals must not be kept in housing in such a way that they can be adversely disturbed by other animals or by the public. The rabbit and guinea pig pens are open topped and I do not feel the sides are of a sufficient height to prevent people from interfering with the animals.. I noticed several people leaning over trying to reach the animals that were hiding at the back of the pen.
2.13 Accommodation must be cleaned as often as necessary to maintain good hygiene standards. I noticed The rabbit and guinea pig pens were dirty, and there was a noticeable amount of flies withing the enclosure. The bird aviaries and Giant Rabbit pens were also far from clean and hygeinic with faeces covering what little stimulation they have.
7.1 Animals must be supplied with adequate amounts of food and drink, appropriate to their needs and at suitable intervals. and 7.3 All Food must be suitable for the species concerned. The rabbits and guinea pigs that were kept inside had very little hay and the giant rabbits kept in aviarys outside had no hay whatsoever. The feeding of hay to rabbits and guinea pigs is absolutely essential.

14.0 Pet Care Advice
14.1 Pet care leaflets or other similar written instructions must be made available to customers free of charge at the time of purchase, in addition to any offer to purchase pet care books or leaflets.
14.2 Purchasers must be given proper advice on the care of the animal and, where necessary, on the maintenance and use of any
accessories.
14.3 Appropriate reference material must always be available for use by
staff.

I was watching a member of staff sell a pair of Chinese hamsters to a lady with a small boy. He told them absolutely nothing about keeping them, what food to feed them, cage enrichment. She was not given a leaflet, nor did the staff member indicate that they had books about the care of the pets. In addition, the pet shop’s own website makes reference to "These care sheets are copyright of The Pet Care Trust, they provide advice and are designed for advice only, please feel free to contact us for any more information, which our trained staff can help with".
The hamsters were all literally cowering in the corner of their cage and the staff member was putting his hand in so quickly just grabbing at them and dropping them until he could keep hold of one. I can't imagine how stressfull that must have been for the hamster. The hamsters were then put into a box and he wrote the price on top in marker pen which overlapped the air holes. Hamsters have tiny respiratory systems and I can only imagine the fumes from the pen would be incredibly irritating to them. It is also worth noting that Chinese hamsters can often have a tendency to fight when accommodated collectively. It would not, therefore, be unreasonable to expect the member of staff to ensure that such welfare knowledge was communicated to the customers.

There are several other points to my visit which concerened me, such as the rabbits and guinea pigs still being kept together, 4 years after the introduction of The Animal Welfare Act 2006, It is well known by the relevant animal welfare and veterinary organisations that rabbits and guinea pigs should not be housed together for reasons including behavioural and dietary incompatibilities. In accordance with the obligations of 15.1 No animals should be stocked or sold unless the staff (or at least one member of the staff) is familiar with the care and welfare of the animals stocked and has a recognised qualification or suitable experience. it is reasonable to assume that the pet shop operator/staff should have been aware of this information.

As the Council sets out in its own document “Guidance Notes - Pet Shops”, pet shop licences are issued under the Pet Animals Act 1951. (which i have reffered to throughout this letter) The provisions of this Act are thus included in the Pet Shop Licence by reference.

In accordance with the provisions of this Act, I should be grateful if the Council would arrange to undertake such inspections of the premises as it deems necessary in order to investigate the non-compliances that I have indicated and any others that might be present.

I also note from the Council’s Guidance Notes (and the relevant Act) the further actions that are consequent upon failures of compliance.

I look forward to receiving the Council’s prompt reply
 
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