No more puppy mills: Tighter animal welfare laws will clamp down on unscrupulous breeders
Inhumane dog breeding expected to be curbed as an outdated legal loophole is closed by Legco, requiring proper licences and inspections of dog traders
Hong Kong dog lovers can breathe more easily now a much campaigned-for amendment to animal trading laws is set to be put in place.
The campaign to close a legal loophole enabling puppy milling in Hong Kong has finally been put through, meaning unscrupulous pedigree breeders in the city face higher penalties and more stringent licensing laws.
The city has seen a boom in the pedigree pup trade over the last two decades which has fueled a home-grown industry churning out puppies like products on a factory chain.
With the amendment, traders who could formerly masquerade as ‘hobby breeders’ owing to outdated laws, will soon have to apply for licences and be subject to inspections when the change comes into effect.
“We are over the moon ... regarding the amendment,” campaigner Gary Chin, who used to sit on the board of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said.
Chin owns a six-year-old husky-sheepdog cross – named Cooper – who was rescued after years of neglect and cruelty as a breeder dog. Cooper suffered severely, confined to a tiny cage that stunted his growth and rendered him furless and haggard.
“But it’s a small first step. Hopefully one day Hong Kong will stop all pet sales [of dogs bred from puppy mills] in pet shops,” Chin added.
He described how during a public forum on the amendment a few years ago, a breeder had complained that the proposal would bring an end to his business.
But legal expert Amanda Whitfort, an associate professor at the University of Hong Kong’s law faculty who had spearheaded the campaign, said the amendment would only stop breeders who kept dogs in poor conditions.
“For those breeders providing appropriate welfare conditions for their dogs, there will be no problem in obtaining a licence to continue,” she said, adding that she was still “delighted” the amendment had finally gone through.
With a pure-bred pup fetching up to HK$20,000 in a city where shelters are full of abandoned and mistreated dogs, activists hope that the tightened laws will be a strong enough deterrent against running a puppy mill.
“These inspections will, for the first time, allow governmental oversight of the health and welfare of all dogs legally sold in Hong Kong,” Whitfort said.
This story was updated from an early version.
