The Dog's Trust warns of rabies risk after it uncovers widespread illegal puppy smuggling from Eastern Europe The Dogs Trust said its findings highlighted the ease with which illegal puppies can be transported across Europe and accused the government of having its "head in the sand" over the issue. It warned of worrying implications for both the puppies" welfare and for the control of rabies. Adrian Burder, chief executive of the Dogs Trust charity, said: "As a nation that loves dogs we know the lengths people will go to in order to get the perfect puppy - but few would expect their young pet to have travelled over 1,250 miles to reach them. Far fewer would expect their illegally transported puppy to come with a fake passport. Even fewer still would consider that their new pet could be carrying a potentially lethal disease. No one would believe that this is happening every day with Government knowledge. He added: "This is not a scaremongering cry about the risk of rabies to the UK but an evidence based report detailing the ease with which illegal puppies can be transported across Europe and can enter the UK." The Eastern European breeders are exploiting the Pet Travel Scheme (PETS) which is designed for the transportation of family pets. It was relaxed two years ago to meet EU guidelines, making it even easier to bring puppies into the UK. Defra figures show between 2011 and 2013 the number of dogs entering the UK from Lithuania has increased by 780%; in Hungary a 663% increase in dogs travelling under PETS into the UK was recorded. A dog in a carrier as filmed by the Dogs Trust (PA) However the charity said that worryingly, this increase only accounts for dogs that are declared; and does not account for the number of dogs that are smuggled into the UK, meaning the actual amount is likely to be much higher. Under the PETS scheme up to five dogs per person can be brought into the UK, as long as they have a pet passport. Under the rules, three people in a van can therefore bring in up to 15 dogs. There are much more stringent rules for dogs which are bought in commercially. The passport must show the dog has been microchipped, vaccinated against rabies and treated for tapeworm. For the rabies vaccine to work, a puppy must be at least 12 weeks old. There then must be a 21 day quarantine period after the vaccine has been administered. The minimum age a puppy can enter the UK therefore is 15 weeks. However, smaller and "cuter" dogs are easier to sell which is why the breeders get vets to falsify documents. One vet in Lithuania was secretly filmed by the Dogs Trust saying she could falsify a passport to show a puppy was older than it was so it could be brought into the UK. "The younger the dog, the more attractive it looks," she said. But when the dog is 15, 16, 17 weeks old, it is not so attractive looking. That's when the dog looks the ugliest, because it is growing its legs are long etc. So, some small correction can be made, the dog can be made out to be a tiny bit older. During the course of its investigation, the Dogs Trust spoke to and secretly filmed 15 breeders and dealers who had sold underage puppies to the UK. One breeder in Lithuania said he imported Pit Bull terriers by claiming they were crossbreeds, as port officials were unable to tell the difference. He said they were very popular in Birmingham. Pit Bulls are banned in the UK under the Dangerous Dogs Act. One breeder in Hungary said she had been supplying puppies to the UK for the last three years. She said she transported between six and eight puppies via Eurotunnel to the UK three times a week using three different transporters. The Dogs Trust said dealers made a profit of around £550 per puppy, meaning some dealers would be earning up to £100,000 a year. The Dogs Trust said it had warned the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) last year about the issue but that the dealers had been able to continue to operate unchecked. The charity also attacked what it called "ineffective" controls at UK border ports "which allows this illegal, commercial trade of puppies to enter the UK almost unhindered." It is now calling for all puppies under the age of six months to be banned from entering Great Britain under the Pet Travel Scheme (PETS) and the creation of a central database logging pets" microchip numbers. Breeding kennels as filmed by the Dogs Trust (PA) Changes to the Pet Travel Scheme are to be introduced on December 29 and will mean that any pet passport issued will need the name and address of the owner but the Dogs Trust said they it was "inadequate" and would not solve the problems. It said the focus on enforcement at UK ports should be immediately shifted from ferry companies and Eurotunnel to government agencies. It said it puppy trafficking was "rife" at the weekend, when there were no Animal and Plant Health Agency or Trading Standards staff on duty at the main ports of entry, such as Dover and the Eurotunnel. The charity said: "Wise to this knowledge, many dealers we made contact with travel with puppies over the weekend." When people are stopped, there is no penalty and they are simply made to return to where they came from, it added. The Dogs Trust has released its findings to coincide with the run up to Christmas, when many people are brought puppies as a present. The charity said the Christmas puppy market remained buoyant "a fact unscrupulous importers are all too willing to exploit." A P&O spokesman said: "Our staff are in an invidious situation as they see suspiciously high numbers of young dogs being presented for travel within the rules of the Scheme, with what appears to be the correct documentation. Dogs Trust has our support for its proposals to raise the age of dogs allowed to travel into the UK, backed by tougher penalties against those engaged in the illegal importation of puppies. A Defra spokesman said: "Responsibility for stopping the illegal movement of puppies begins in the country where they are born, and we are writing to the authorities in Lithuania and Hungary to remind them of their duty to ensure passports are correct and the welfare of pets intended for sale is safeguarded. Changes to the pet passport scheme this December will further strengthen the system across the EU by increasing traceability and making the pet passport harder to forge or tamper with. People in the UK can also help end this trade by insisting to see a puppy with its mother, which is the best way to ensure the dog's welfare.