Breaking Update
Israel Cracks Down on ‘Puppy Mills’
Israel tightens kennel building permit rules to combat "puppy mills," aiming to prevent massive, uncontrolled dog breeding for profit and enhance animal.
Jerusalem, 17 December, 2025 (TPS-IL) — Israel’s Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security will tighten the conditions for receiving a recommendation for a building permit for kennels to prevent the establishment of dog breeding houses in agricultural areas.
In recent years, a serious phenomenon of the establishment of commercial facilities that encourage the massive and uncontrolled breeding of dogs, under the definition of “kennels”, has been expanding. This industry, also known as “puppy mills” or “dog factories”, is designed to generate financial profit at the expense of animals and the public.
As part of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security’s activities to protect animal welfare and as an additional step to eradicate the phenomenon, the ministry will tighten the conditions for obtaining a building permit for kennels, in order to prevent kennels for commercial breeding from receiving a permit.
In addition to the existing procedures for obtaining a building permit for agricultural structures, from now on every application for the establishment of a kennel will be required to present additional documents and strict conditions. Among other things, approval from a veterinarian accompanying the kennel will be required, a declaration by the applicant that no commercial breeding will take place there, as well as a comprehensive business plan that includes details about the nature of the activity, a broad industry overview, and financial reports.
The Ministry said that through these requirements, it will “ensure that only kennels that operate for the benefit of animal welfare and essential activities will be approved, and that the possibility of establishing dog factories in agricultural areas will be effectively prevented.”
