In a number of recent debates, Guy - who is a Patron of International Cat Care - has championed the cause of domestic animals.
In a short debate he led at the end of 2024, he asked the Government to regulate cat breeding to ban the cruelty of breeding of cats with "extreme, exaggerated features to sell as fashion accessories without any concern for the terrible harm to the animal." He cited the example of "so-called bully cats ... bred without fur, which predisposes them to painful skin disease, while their genetically shortened legs can result in joint abnormalities and agonising arthritis" He asked the Government to join him in "condemning the practice of breeding for deformity, which causes unacceptable suffering and distress" and asked the Minister (Baroness Hayman) to "commit as a matter of urgency to regulating cat breeding in order to ban such activity." The full text of the debate, including the Minister's reply is here.
In early February 2025, Guy spoke in the Second Reading of the Renters' Rights Bill and urged the Government to strengthen the legislation to make sure more people renting their property can own a cat or a dog. He explained why this issue is important to him: "My husband and I have been blessed with the company of several cats—Destino is the incumbent—for 30 years and understand only too well the old adage that a cat is what makes a flat or a house a home. We have always been lucky to own our own home, but the companionship offered by pets should not be a privilege limited only to those who can do so." He said that while we are increasingly becoming a nation of renters, over half a million households who would like to have a cat do not have one because their rental agreements forbid it. And the consequences were clear: "as a result, Cats Protection took in the equivalent of three cats each day last year where owners had to make the gut-wrenching decision to give them up. These are not just dry statistics; wanting a pet and being told you cannot have one impacts people’s health and well-being, not least older, often lonely, people for whom a pet is a lifeline."
He welcomed the provisions on pet ownership already in the Bill "because they mark the start of a long-overdue culture shift which will mean that more tenants can own a pet in rented homes, with incalculable benefits not just for their own health and for the pets, but for society as a whole. With more people renting than ever, and more wanting to own a pet, this legislation is a tremendous opportunity to unlock thousands of homes for pet owners ... and ensure that we deliver for all those who want and deserve that most precious gift in life—the unconditional love of a pet.
The full text of the debate is here.
ENDS
