A regional Senedd member has met the UK’s first biosecurity dog, who has been training in Pembrokeshire.

Joyce Watson, MS for Mid and West Wales, was at the Senedd on February 8 for an RSPB organised event discussing the protection of Wales’ seabirds.

There she met Jinx, the biosecurity dog who is helping to ensure the protection of seabirds.

She heard how the three-year-old cocker spaniel trained for two years on Ramsey Island in Pembrokeshire, and will now be used on islands around Wales to sniff out rats.

Mrs Watson said: “Wales’ islands are globally important for breeding seabirds. They are home to over half the world’s population of Manx shearwater.

"Grassholm is the world’s third largest gannet colony. Puffins, razorbills, guillemots, Arctic terns – all our coastal islands are uniquely special.

“But they are also uniquely vulnerable to invasive predators. Just one pregnant brown rat can wreak havoc, producing a colony of 300 individuals in just eight months that would decimate a seabird colony.

“I remember when they were cleared from Ramsey over 20 years ago. The impact on Manx shearwaters was astonishing – from a few hundred to 5,000 pairs in just a few years. Sadly, though, puffins have not yet returned.

“That is why the Welsh Government has provided £250,000 for new biosecurity measures for Wales that includes funding for Jinx. It will help us prevent, detect and respond to future threats to our islands’ seabird colonies.”

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