Three Fifths of General Public Support Dog Licensing
In recent years several fatal dog attacks were reported across the UK with the American XL bully disproportionately involved in media coverage recently. This led the Prime Minister to announce a ban of the breed, which came in to force at the end of 2023. For owners, it will be against the law to own an XL Bully dog in England and Wales without an exemption certificate from 1 February 2024. Prior to that, from the start of 2024, selling, rehoming, gifting, or allowing an XL bully to stray will also became illegal.
This ruling has been passed as an addition to the work the Government has been doing for some time with the police and local authorities to encourage responsible dog ownership. At specific points in the past, dog owners in parts of the UK have had to hold a licence to purchase or own a dog – this law was most recently repealed in 1987.
M·E·L Research, as part of our nationally representative Research with a Purpose omnibus (n=1500, 16+., UK-Nat Rep) looked to understand whether respondents think that the government should reinstate this or a similar law, what form this licence could take and how the general public, and dog owners, feel this may impact dog ownership in the UK.
Three Fifths Support Licensing in Some Form – Including Almost Half of Current Dog Owners and Two Thirds of Previous Owners
More than half of respondents have owned (25%) or currently own (31%) a dog in the UK. Half (51%) of respondents were also aware of the dog licensing act that was repealed in 1987, although this is significantly higher among those who are currently dog owners and those who have been owners in the past.
When asked whether the Government should bring back the requirement for dog owners to be licenced, 57% agree. A further 28% said ‘maybe’, but that they would need to know more, and only 9% of people said that they would categorically not support a dog licence.
This supports similar data from surveys published by Johnson’s Pet Care in March 2023 and by YouGov polling in October 2023.
Although significantly lower levels of agreement are seen among current dog owners (48%), past owners are significantly more likely to agree (66%). Current dog owners are significantly more likely to indicate they would be open to the idea but would need more information about it first (39% vs. 28% avg.). Across the board, only around one in ten people are categorically against the idea of licensing dog ownership.
All respondents
Current Dog Owner
Past Dog Owner
Not/never dog owner
Base
1504
472
382
650
Yes
57%
48%
66%
59%
Maybe, I would need to know more about it
28%
39%
23%
23%
No
9%
11%
7%
8%
Don’t know
6%
2%
4%
10%
A Fifth of Those Who May Support Licensing Want Some Form Of Test & Younger People Want a Practical Exam
For those who said ‘Yes’ or ‘Maybe’, we then asked what form this licence should take.
More than two thirds (68%) said that registration of a dog would be reasonable on its own. However, a fifth felt that there should be some form of test – either taking the form of a practical test or examination (15%) or a written examination (5%).
Views were broadly consistent regardless of current or past dog ownership or lack thereof.
All respondents
Current Dog Owner
Past Dog Owner
Not/never dog owner
Bases
1282
411
339
533
Registration of the dog
68%
68%
72%
66%
Written test/exam
5%
9%
5%
3%
Practical test/exam
15%
15%
11%
17%
Other (please specify)
2%
1%
4%
2%
Don’t know
9%
8%
7%
12%
However, there were some differences by age, with older respondents much more likely to feel that registration of the dog is appropriate on its own, compared to those of younger ages, particularly those under the age of 24, who were significantly more likely to support a written test or, particularly, a practical test or examination.
Total
16 – 24
25 – 34
35 – 44
45 – 54
55 – 64
65+
Bases
1282
163
194
197
222
199
308
Registration of the dog
68%
56%
60%
61%
69%
76%
79%
Written test/exam
5%
10%
11%
6%
3%
3%
3%
Practical test/exam
15%
28%
13%
18%
13%
13%
9%
Other (please specify)
2%
1%
2%
1%
3%
2%
3%
Don’t know
9%
7%
14%
13%
11%
6%
6%
Better Care, Reduced Puppy Farming Seen As Benefits – But A Quarter Note Risk of Abandonment
Almost 50% feel that if the Government were to reinstate the need for a dog licence it would deter unsuitable dog owners (47%), and more than two fifths agree that it would encourage a better standard of care for dogs (43%). Also, as a result of the reinstatement of the dog licence, 37% would hope to minimise puppy farming as well as see a reduction in violent attacks, while a third of respondents would hope to see a reduction in over-breeding, an overall reduction of the number of dogs people own, and encourage better standards of dog training (all 33%).
However, a quarter of respondents note that this could lead to an increase in dogs being put into rescue or shelters, a fear held by significantly more of those who currently own dogs (31%), while one in five worry of an increase in dog abandonment (22%). Early signs are that some of these fears have been borne-out as a result of the ban on XL-bullies.
About this study
This data was collected as part of our ongoing ‘Research with a Purpose’ omnibus study run every 6 months. The sample for the October 2023 wave was 1503 UK adults aged 16+. Fieldwork was conducted online. Invitations to participate were sent to members of an online panel. Results were weighted to reflect the profile of UK adults. Targets were Age, Sex and Government Office Region based on ONS-mid-year estimates.
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