A new regulation in Shanghai will impose a limit of one dog per household as part of a series of measures being introduced to curb the growing number of pets in the densely populated city. The new law will come into force on May 15 this year.

The government justified the new policy by saying that it is necessary due to uncontrolled barking, the growing risk of dog attacks and animal waste jeopardizing the urban environment.

According to a survey by Beijing-based magazine, Dog Fans, there are close to 58 million pet dogs in the 20 major Chinese cities, as of the end of 2009. It is projected that this number is rising approximately 30 percent each year. In Shanghai alone, it is estimated that the dog population has reached 800,000 and, according to official reports, only one quarter of that number is registered.

According to the new regulations, the per-household restriction applies to people living in down-town areas and new urban centers, such as the Lingang and Jiading developments. Still, if a household currently has more than one licensed dog, the owners will be allowed to keep their pets.

Dog owners will also be obligated to give their pets’ puppies only to families that do not already have a dog, or to one of the dog adoption agencies approved by the government. They must not keep the puppies after they reach three months of age. The same rule applies to households with more than one unlicensed dog.

In addition, large attack-dogs, such as Tibetan mastiffs, Beauceron wolfdogs and English bulldogs will not be allowed to be kept or raised by any household in Shanghai.

According to Shanghai Daily, there are approximately 600,000 unlicensed dogs in the city. In last year alone, there were almost 140,000 reported cases of people being bitten by unlicensed dogs. The government will encourage dog owners to license their dogs by introducing lower costs for dog licenses. The price for licensing a dog will decrease from approximately $304 to not more than $152.

All dogs will have to be licensed and vaccinated against rabies regularly, and will also have to be put through annual veterinary checks. Dog owners who violate the new law will face a fine in excess of $152 . For those who fail to clean up after their dogs, the fine will be approximately $30, and the owner of a dog that attacks people more than once can expect to face a prison sentence.

Although the police will not make any inspections to verify whether people own more dogs than are allowed, a number of police officers will have scanners to detect implanted chips to check whether dogs are licensed.

Officials said the new law is supposed to impose better management of dogs, decrease cases of animal attacks and prevent rabies.

References:
Shanghai.gov
Shanghai Daily

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