Dog Owners Information.

Notting Hill Carnival 2009:

Held each August Bank Holiday, the Notting Hill Carnival is now the second largest street festival in the world. With thousands of people attending the two-day event, the advice is to leave your dog at home if you are participating.

West London and the surrounding areas will all be affected as the crowds of people arrive en masse ready to enjoy themselves, this huge celebration is no place generally for pets; with large crowds, loud music, traffic and litter - why put your dog in that situation?

Please keep your dog safely at home and away from the Carnival.

This year the Met Police ‘Status Dogs Unit’ (SDU) alongside the RSPCA will be at the Carnival (and other London events including Peckham Rye and Brookham Park) they have said to “stop dangerous dogs being taken to the event”.

A dog doesn’t need to be acting at all dangerous - just physically resemble a ‘pit bull type’ which unless exempted may be seized under the Dangerous Dogs Act as a prohibited dog and taken away to police appointed kennels.

Last year 21 dogs were seized during the Carnival weekend; some of those dogs taken were not at the Carnival but just in the area at the time, one seized dog was just 16 weeks of age, distraught owners had to later attend stressful court hearings to determine the fate of their dog.

Three of those dogs seized last year later died in police custody; two from unknown causes and a third from pneumonia. The police later confirmed that an outbreak of the deadly parvo virus had caused one of the kennels holding seized dogs to ‘shut down’ adding further misery and distress to those families who had their dog taken from them.

The advice especially for owners of short coated, muscular shaped pets is to avoid the actual carnival, the route and local areas.

Keep your pet dog safe this weekend whilst the SDU and RSPCA are in the area looking for “dangerous dogs”- that will include pets, which in their opinion, look like ‘pit bull types’.

For further Information see also :

Status Dogs Unit to attend Notting Hill Carnival - DDAWatch

First Notting Hill Carnival seized dogs to go home - News 2008

Notting Hill Carnival - Metropolitan Police Information

Notting Hill Carnival - Event Information

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