A CARLISLE woman illegally ran a lucrative puppy trading business for almost two years, falsely advertising that she had a licence.

At the city’s Rickergate court, 27-year-old Tonicha Grady admitted a single offence of running the business without the required licence that all such breeders and traders must have.

She was prosecuted by Cumberland Council.

Outlining the offence, Jonathan Farnworth, representing the Council, said Grady had once held the required licence but after it expired, she went on to illegally sell four litters of Staffordshire bull terrier puppies.

She traded illegally in the puppies between February 1 of 2022 and January 8 of this year.

“Anybody who is running a business selling or breeding puppies has to licensed, for obvious reasons,” said Mr Farnworth.

The defendant advertised the puppies on a website called Pets4Homes, a leading UK marketplace for dogs, puppies and kittens. On three occasions, said the lawyer, Grady advertised and sold puppies without having a licence.

Her adverts on each occasion claimed wrongly that she was licensed, effectively “misleading” customers.

The lawyer continued: “The Crown maintain that selling puppies can be quite a profitable business. It’s right to say that this defendant did have a licence previously.

“She was licensed between December 2020 and December 2021 to breed and sell dogs.” The system is designed to ensure the welfare of the dogs involved, and involves a visit from a local authority officer and a vet.

They inspect the premises where dogs are kept and the condition of the animals involved, said Mr Farnworth.

Despite getting reminder letters asking if she wished to renew her licence, Grady failed to do so, and yet continued breeding and selling Staffordshire bull terrier pups.

Grady, who lives in the Morton area of Carlisle, must have known what she did was dishonest because her adverts omitted her full licence number – which ends with an expiry date, said Mr Farnworth.

In June of 2022, she advertised five female pups at a price of £2,000 each. Similar adverts appeared at later dates. The Council investigation suggested the sale of the puppies brought in between £33,600 and £38,000 over the period involved.

Mr Farnworth accepted there was nothing to suggest any welfare issues with the puppies but the lack of a licence created a “potential risk."

Though Grady must have had financial outgoings, the figures showed the business was “fairly profitable,” said the lawyer, who said the Council would ask for the defendant to pay both the investigation and legal costs.

These totalled £1,299.

Tariq Khawam, defending, said it was not entirely accurate to say Grady had deliberately misled customers.

District Judge John Temperley asked the Probation Service to prepare a background report and adjourned sentence until July 25, when Grady will be sentenced.