Open petition: Make repeatedly feeding another person’s pet after being told to stop an offence

Created by Richard Wickham
Closes on 13 February 2027

Create a specific criminal offence where a person, without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, feeds or attempts to feed another person’s pet on two or more separate occasions and the owner or lawful keeper has clearly instructed them to stop.
The offence should require proof that:

The person received a clear and evidenced instruction not to feed the animal;
They knew, or ought to have known, that the owner’s consent had been refused or withdrawn;
They continued feeding or attempting to feed the animal; and
Their conduct caused, or created a significant risk of, illness, injury, poisoning, dietary harm, behavioural disturbance, distress, disappearance, other danger to the animal, or death.
Police and authorised animal-welfare inspectors should be able to investigate complaints and take enforcement action.
The offence should not apply to accidental feeding, veterinary treatment, authorised care, emergency action reasonably taken to prevent immediate suffering, or assistance given to an animal genuinely believed to be lost, abandoned or in immediate danger.

Sign this petition