EU parliament adopts new rules to protect cats, dogs

The European Union has approved the first ever common European rules for cats and dogs, including bans on abusive practices and illegal pet trading.

The EU is home to over 72 million dogs and 83 million cats, according to the European Commission, and has so far only had rules on health requirements for cats and dogs travelling inside the EU.

The new rules introduce bans on harmful breeding practices as well as on ear-cropping and tail-docking, and cats and dogs must have microchips.

The European Parliament in Strasbourg voted on the final text that also introduces minimum welfare criteria for dogs and cats in kennels and shelters.

The EU wants to better regulate a market worth €1.3 billion and animal rights groups say the rules will help tackle animal trafficking from countries like Bulgaria and Romania.

The law also prohibits inbreeding and the breeding of animals with accentuated traits, such as overly short legs, that could affect their welfare.

Inbreeding is allowed in some cases, such as species with low genetic diversity.

The final text bans crossbreeding between domestic and wild breeds, which can lead to behaviours unsuitable in domestic animals.

Police, military and border patrol dogs will, however, be exempted from some rules including the ban on coercive collars that are used to train the animals.

There had been an attempt by MEPs to ban the keeping or selling of dogs and cats in pet shops, but that was removed from the final text.