Davina McCall and Katie Piper are backing our Ban Puppy Imports campaign as a petition to stop the vile trade closes in on its 100,000 target.
The number of names on the e-petition to spark a debate in Parliament on banning the importation of pups from cruel farms raced past 80,000 yesterday.
Davina and Katie join dog lovers Simon Cowell, Dame Olivia Newton-John, Ellie Goulding and Shirley Ballas by throwing their weight behind the Mirror’s mission.
Former Strictly contestant Katie, 36, said: “Puppies are coming in from Europe and being torn from their mothers on horrendous puppy farms at only a few weeks old and driven here in vans to be then dressed up and sold for huge prices.
“They often die because of their treatment and trauma... We must educate the public on this and stop the demand.”
The Ban Puppy Imports petition has also been buoyed by support from Ricky Gervais, Dermot O’Leary, Coleen Nolan, Sherrie Hewson, Bill Bailey, Saffron Barker, Rachel Riley and Kay Burley.
It was started by Lucy Parkinson, from Preston, Lancs. She said: “It’s incredible to think how it’s taken off with all these celebrities. I never thought I could have achieved something like this – we are so close.”
Our campaign has also been backed by Agria Pet Insurance and Pets4Homes and spearheaded by celebrity vet Marc Abraham. He said: “I am overwhelmed by the support Lucy’s petition has received.”
Our aim is to ban what campaigners call a “legal but immoral” route to the UK for puppies aged just 15 weeks old.
The Government could simply raise the import age to at least six months old, when the puppies have permanent teeth.
Border officials could then identify those that are too young – paperwork is often faked in countries such as Russia, Hungary and Romania.
It would also make them less attractive to buyers who do not usually want puppies at six months or older.
Breeders would also be reluctant to rear dogs for that long, campaigners believe.
The Government already advises potential buyers to “see puppies interacting with their mothers in their place of birth”.
To sign the Ban Puppy Imports petition go to https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/326261
