Many see their dog as "man's best friend". The federal government now wants to take action against "black sheep" among breeders with new rules. What do animal rights activists and dog owners say?
Berlin (dpa) - Sufficient exercise, no keeping on a chain and a ban on the exhibition of animals with certain characteristics - the Federal Ministry of Agriculture wants to guarantee species-appropriate dog keeping with stricter rules.
The initiative is well received by animal rights activists and dog owners - including the planned obligation to guarantee the dog at least two hours a day for a total of at least one hour outside of a kennel. The measure was sometimes maliciously commented on social media as "Gassipflicht".
One hour of exercise is not always enough for young dogs
For the average man and woman, however, little is likely to change. "The normal dog owner laughs about it," says the spokesman for the Association for the German Dog Industry (VDH), Udo Kopernik. Because he is usually on the road longer with his four-legged friend anyway. Katrin Umlauf, dog officer at the Animal Welfare Association, also welcomes the obligation to exercise and would like to have even more prescribed time outside for the dogs. With young animals that are very happy to run, an hour can be very short, she says.
When the draft was presented, a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Agriculture had already restricted the fact that the authorities responsible for the controls in the federal states would certainly not ring the doorbell of every dog owner and ask whether he had already been outside with the dog. The regulation is primarily aimed at keeping kennels - and this has become rare today.
Checks in animal welfare are always difficult anyway, because it often goes into the private sector, says dog expert Umlauf. But if someone keeps his dog in the kennel all day, that is definitely seen. In addition, dog owners would have guidelines that they could use as a guide. "People often do not act maliciously, but out of ignorance," says Umlauf.
Evidence of the owner's qualification required
The Animal Welfare Association therefore wants a nationwide regulation according to which future dog owners must prove that they can handle it before purchasing a four-legged friend. "That would prevent spontaneous, ill-considered purchases," says Umlauf. "I think that's often the main problem." She would like to see proof in the new ordinance - the draft is currently being coordinated with the federal states and professional associations, so changes are still possible.
Most of the measures in the planned regulation are aimed at breeding: dog breeders should have to look after puppies for at least four hours a day so that they get used to people. In addition, it should apply that a supervisor may look after a maximum of three litters - i.e. puppy offspring - at the same time. Tethering - so so-called "chain dogs", not leash itself - should be prohibited. And it should be forbidden to show dogs that have "torture breeding characteristics". There are characteristics "that people find very beautiful, but mean considerable suffering for animals," says Umlauf. An example is the pug with its short nose, with which the animal gets breathing problems. The ban on exhibitions removes the incentive to breed animals in this way.
These "minimum standards" are to be welcomed, says Kopernik. They should therefore mainly meet commercial dog dealers who put animal welfare aside and sell puppies online, for example, "without checking whether the future owner is even remotely suitable for keeping an animal". Many animal rights activists would have kept a very close eye on such businesses. "And if something is not quite within the legal framework, they can now advertise," says Kopernik from the VDH.
The majority of dogs are bred out of control
The umbrella organization has around 600,000 members. Many are dog owners, between 10,000 and 15,000 are breeders who breed 80,000 to 90,000 puppies annually. According to the VDH, this only corresponds to around 15 percent of the dogs that are born in the country each year. "The majority of dogs are produced without any control," said a statement from the association. One would therefore like - in addition to the regulation - a "pet law". According to Kopernik, this should regulate what already applies to breeders organized in the VDH: They have to complete training and prove that the local requirements for breeding are appropriate. And their dogs must have a behavioral and health test.
According to Kopernik, the conditions of many dogs would improve after breeding with the owner: After all, trained breeders would never give someone a dog who does not do them justice.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 200819-99-223967 / 2