Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976
Certain types of animals are classified as dangerous wild animals. These are listed on a schedule attached to the Dangerous Wild Animals Act.
Anyone who wants to keep a classified dangerous wild animal at their home must hold a licence issued by the council. Licences are issued subject to specialised and strict conditions. These aim to protect the welfare, safety and security of the animal, its owner and the public. Licences need renewing every year. They are subject to a satisfactory vet report.
Details of the Dangerous Wild Animal Schedule are available from the Licensing Unit on 01724 297592.
Application form
Online application and payment available:
Downloadable application form:
Licence conditions:
Fees and charges
Additional information
Animal Welfare Act 2006
As you may be aware, the law that protects animals is changing. The Animal Welfare Act 2006 came into effect on 6 April 2007. This Act brings together and modernises animal welfare legislation, some of which dates from 1911. The Animal Welfare Act 2006 will:
- Introduce a 'duty of care' on people to ensure the needs of any animal for which they are responsible
- Create a new offence of failing to provide for the needs of an animal in your care
- Place more emphasis on owners and keepers who will need to understand their responsibilities and take all reasonable steps to provide for the needs of their animals.
You can find more details of how the Act may affect you from Defra's or the RSPCA's websites:
Note: The above documents are in Portable Document Format (PDF) and therefore require a suitable reader to view them. A reader can be downloaded free from the Adobe website (full instructions for downloading the reader are provided on the site).