CONCERNED residents have dubbed plans for a new County Durham dog breeding facility ‘cruel’.

The proposal has been submitted to Durham County Council to create a facility to allow for the exercise, breeding and keeping of greyhounds on the outskirts of Sedgefield.

In the design and access statement is states: “The dogs are kept securely on site, to high welfare standards, as the council will appreciate from the inspections carried out by the RSPCA.  The proposals involve a limited amount of breeding taking place and there has only been one litter born on site back in 2018. This is to ensure a succession of greyhounds capable of competitive racing which is a legitimate hobby.

“The puppies with the most potential are retained from any new litters with the balance of the litter sold to good homes, in the same manner as any domestic litters. Whilst it is accepted that the operation is more extensive than a household with a one or two dogs, it is nevertheless a hobby and not a commercial operation or bespoke puppy farm.”

The applicant said he either keeps or rehomes all of his greyhounds when they have reached the end of their competitive periods.

However, nearby homeowners have raised concerns over the welfare of the dogs.

One neighbouring resident said: “As the owner will not be permitted to reside on the premises it would be deemed as animal cruelty to breed puppies. Mothers in labour may be left unattended overnight at a time where they would need constant supervision and once birthed puppies cannot be left for more than two hours until they are six months of age. Puppies under ten weeks cannot hold their waste for more than one hour, ten to 12 weeks two hours and even at three months old only three hours. At this point, (three to six months), the one hour per month rule applies so even at six months old the dog can only hold its waste for six hours. Dogs therefore left unattended will be left in their own waste for long periods of time. This has also environmental / disease implications.”

Several objections have also been raised regarding noise issues as a maximum of 14 adult dogs are kept on site.

One concerned resident said: “I object to this application purely on the grounds of noise pollution. There is a background hum at night-time which I can only assume is coming from some kind of generator, and it disrupts our sleep. The noise survey only seems to consider the noise from barking dogs which is not the whole issue. This application should be rejected until a full noise impact study is complete.”

Another added: “The dogs can be heard above the traffic noise - this is worse in winter when the trees are bare. On welfare grounds it is unsuitable for kennels as the dogs are left for long periods on their own and there is lack of exercise space.”

To comment on the application visit durham.gov.uk