26 J Yeates and D Bowles Trade and Movement Laws The opportunity for breeders to act irresponsibly and/or criminally is dependent on what legislation is in place and how effectively this is enforced Consequently, breeders’ motivation to offend or harm their animals is likely increased by failures in the official response—whereby this issue is not recognised as a priority for enforcement bodies Rational Choice Theory explains offenders’ motivation as being encouraged by a lack of guardians (that is, people able to identify and help the dogs and to punish the offenders), the presence of suitable victims (that is, dogs are an easy target, unable to defend themselves and easy to cheaply breed and keep) and a motivated offender (such as a person motivated by the possible financial gain, as discussed above) Current UK legislation is relevant to the problem of a lack of guardianship— a summary of which is provided in Table Much of this legislation is old and outdated (for example, the legal definition of appropriate/criminal behaviour), and varies across each of the four nations that make up the UK, as certain policy areas are devolved to each of these four nations The absence of a capable guardian is facilitated by inconsistencies and oversights in the current trade and movement laws and enforcement For example, in England and in Wales, the licensing of commercial breeders (as detailed above) falls to local authorities to enforce and may not be a priority Thereby, enforcers focus only on the most extreme harms—after they have occurred—rather than effectively preventing them by ensuring good breeding practices Although pet dealers should have pet shop licences so they can sell the puppies commercially not all so, largely because of the limited clarity and enforcement of the legislation Additionally, some licensed dealers not have physical premises but sell from a private address, which may not get inspected by the local authority when issuing the licence as it is not a commercial premises—making it difficult for local authorities to decide when renewing the licence if the business and its premises meets the conditions under the Pet Animals Act As a significant portion of the puppy trade is international in nature, this poses additional risks with regard to establishing a capable guardian For example, the high rate of puppy exportation from Ireland to the UK was likely due to the combined opportunities provided by: EU/government subsidies given to Irish breeders, the availability of cheap land and geographical closeness to the UK market, and the lack of effective legislation and effective enforcement at the borders In addition, puppies have been able to come from Ireland to Northern Ireland and Scotland, be mis-declared as