A draft amendment to the Animal Protection Act (動物保護法) would significantly discourage animal cruelty and bolster owners’ rights in the most extensive changes to the act in 25 years, the Council of Agriculture said on Sunday.
The council on Friday issued an advance notice for the act to be amended. The notice provides the public 30 days to comment on the matter.
The law has not been amended to this extent since its promulgation on Nov. 4, 1998, the council said.
Photo: Screen grab from YouTube
The draft amendments would increase pet owners’ responsibilities by more tightly regulating the number of cats or dogs that can be owned, and clearly defining the act of pet abandonment, the council said.
The planned amendment would also ban the use of animals in gifting, gambling and other forms of entertainment, and increase punitive measures on animal abuse, it said.
If the amendment is promulgated, night market game stalls would be banned from offering fish or turtles as prizes. Offenders could face fines of up to NT$250,000.
The council said the amendments aim to enhance pet industry management by establishing legal bases to manage more diverse pet categories, and implement measures to regulate sources of dog and cat breeding and selling.
The amendment would also step up pet food labeling and advertisement oversight, it added.
The amendment would also expand the authority of local animal protection inspectors, empowering them with the right to enter private domains during emergencies and, if necessary, detain the animals in question.
Taiwan Citizen Participation Association director-general Ho Tsung-hsun (何宗勳) commended the draft amendment for including provisions that would allow emergency responders to enter premises without permission or a warrant when responding to animal abuse reports.
Including “entertainment or business purposes” alongside gambling and other inappropriate causes would prevent night market stall owners from gifting animals as attractions, Ho said.
“Animals are living beings, not commodities,” he added.
Additional reporting by Chen Chia-yi
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