AN Enniskillen man has been handed a fine for operating a dog breeding establishment without a licence. On Wednesday, Joseph Brown (35) of Gallon Road, Enniskillen was charged at Enniskillen Magistrates Court with the offence.
On October 18th, the dog warden received information about Brown operating the establishment and when he visited the site he seen that there was numerous dog pens in a ‘shed’.
The court heard how the defendant began the establishment in 2016, after a third party was going to put the dogs down, so to prevent this, Brown, who is a self employed farmer, took over care of the dogs.
Defence Counsel Barry Lynam said that Brown has had numerous conversations with the dog warden in an attempt to regulate the situation, and has since submitted a planning application for the establishment.
Mr Lynam also pointed out that a large number of dogs have now been removed from the area, and when inspected there was no evidence that the animals had been mistreated.
He also told the court that the defendant was an ‘animal lover’ and he was not trying to make a profit at the expense, or to the detriment of the animals.
District Judge Nigel Broderick pointed out that ultimately he would sell the dogs and referred to the importance of the legislation that is in place to protect the welfare of animals. He also said that he believed that the animals were taken into care with good intentions, and were looked after appropriately. He also pointed out that Brown was working in conjunction with the authorities and that there was no evidence of mistreatment.
He fined Brown £500, and ordered him to pay £50 in court costs.
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