Controversial Moama puppy farm gets council approval despite uproar




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A French bulldog pup.  (Supplied: Ashley Fenn)

A controversial puppy farm proposed for Moama, on the NSW-Victorian border, has been given the green light — despite a petition with more than 38,000 signatures opposing it.

Murray River Council passed the proposal last week, by five votes to four.

Murray River Councillor Geoff Wise said he, and his colleagues, had been inundated with thousands of new emails since the council’s ruling from people who were upset by the decision.

“I’m receiving one [email] every few minutes,” he said.

The ABC previously reported the development application for the puppy farm was submitted by Victorian dog breeder Ashley Fenn. 

In February, Oscar’s Law president Georgie Purcell, who organised the petition, said Mr Fenn was an “unsuitable” person to run the dog-breeding business because a former employee of his had been charged with animal cruelty and operating an unregistered business.

This sparked concern from animal welfare activists, and claims that Victoria’s tough laws on puppy farms were leading to breeders relocating to NSW, where the regulations are more lax.

Mr Fenn said at the time that Oscar’s Law was “misleading” petitioners with “incorrect and libellous claims”.

“We have been breeding animals for over 25 years and it has never been alleged, nor have I been charged or even investigated regarding animal cruelty charges or complaints,” Mr Fenn said.

Councillor seeks moratorium

The Moama breeding centre could host up to 200 dogs and 120 puppies.

Laws in Victoria limit the number of female dogs at breeding centres to 10 and litters are capped at five per dog, after which they have to be retired.

There are no such limits in NSW.

Cr Wise is now calling for a moratorium to be placed on all applications for dog-breeding facilities until new laws are introduced by the NSW Government.

He wants the government to step in, re-assess existing laws and bring them into line with Victoria’s tougher laws.

“The laws aren’t good enough here. We’ve got to do something to help get animals protected more,” he said.

Council’s hands tied

Cr Wise said people were targeting their frustration at councillors but they should be sending their messages to the state government. 

“All councillors have been bombarded with it but they’re bombarding the wrong people,” he said.

The proposal was consistent with existing laws, meaning council’s hands were tied and there was nothing it could do to stop the proposal from passing, he said.

“We are only the enforcers of the law and we couldn’t do anything else other than pass it legally because the law states that we have to do that,” Cr Wise said.

‘We need to work together’

Member for Murray Helen Dalton said she had also been inundated with complaints from people urging her to intervene.

“I would really like laws to be stronger in NSW so the councils aren’t put in this position,” she said. 

“If they reject [the proposal] they could be taken to court and they’ll lose ratepayers’ money fighting it.”

Ms Dalton said she would be happy to assist Cr Wise. 

“We need to work together to prevent this,” she said.

Cr Wise said he was hoping the motion would be rescinded at the next council meeting but said no other councillors would second it.

“They probably believe that it will be costly for the council to pursue it in a court of law and that we’ll probably lose because of the laws,” he said.

Breeding centre to bring jobs

In February, Mr Fenn said his proposed centre would bring economic benefits to the region.

“The proposed development will employ upwards of 20 staff on and off the property, plus bring hundreds of thousands of dollars into the local economy through local suppliers of goods and services,” he said.

Source: Thanks msn.com