16.— (1) (a) It shall be unlawful for the operator of a dog breeding establishment to keep at that establishment a dog that is over 8 weeks old and that is not implanted with a microchip.

(b) It shall be unlawful for the operator of a dog breeding establishment to remove, cause to be removed, or permit the removal of, a dog kept at that establishment that is not implanted with a microchip to other accommodation, consequent upon a sale, or decision to transfer possession, of the dog to another person.

(c) This subsection comes into operation on the day from which subsection (2) ceases to have effect.

(2)(a) It shall be unlawful for the operator of a dog breeding establishment to keep at that establishment a dog that is over 12 weeks old and that is not implanted with a microchip.

(b) This subsection ceases to have effect from the day immediately following the expiration of the period of 12 months after its commencement.

(3) Subsections (1) and (2) shall not apply to the operator of a dog breeding establishment if—

(a) that operator is a hunt or game club,

(b) the dog concerned is registered in a register (in this section referred to as a “hunt club register”) established and maintained by the Hunting Association of Ireland or the Irish branch of the Federation of Associations for Hunting and Conservation of the European Union (FACE), and

(c) in relation to the hunt club register there is compliance with subsections (4) and (5) and regulations (if any) under subsection (6).

(4) A hunt club register shall contain the following particulars:

(a) a reproduction of the mark imprinted on the skin or coat of the dog to enable its identification;

(b) the name of the owner of the dog and the address at which he or she resides;

(c) the address of the dog breeding establishment at which the dog is kept;

(d) the date of birth and sex of the dog;

(e) the dog’s colouring and any particular feature or features that distinguish the dog.

(5) A hunt club register shall be made available for inspection by an authorised person at all reasonable times.

(6) The Minister may make regulations in relation to the maintenance and content of a hunt club register.

(7) In this section—

“authorised implanter” means—

(a) a veterinary practitioner, or

(b) a person belonging to such class of persons as may be prescribed;

“microchip” means a device, implanted by an authorised implanter under the skin covering the neck of a dog, bearing a number from which it is possible to identify the dog concerned and to locate information held in respect of that dog, including information held on a database established under paragraph (aa) (inserted by section 26) of section 19(2) of the Act of 1986.