Draft legislation on issues relating to household pets and strays, which also introduces the mandatory spaying of animals by their owners, will be temporarily withdrawn so that issues that emerged during the process can be re-examined, Agriculture Minister Vangelis Apostolou announced on Tuesday.
The draft bill will be re-introduced when the relevant changes have been made, clarified Apostolou following a strong outcry by animal protection bodies across Greece.
If the bill had passed, all pet owners would have had six months to neuter their animals. If they didn’t, they would have to pay an annual fee (fine) of 100 euros. However, owners would have been able to avoid neutering their pets if they had a male/female pair by paying a special levy. This would be allowed for breeding dogs and cats.
The bill also stipulated that during trips and walks owners will have to carry the animal’s passport, which will replace its health certificate. At the same time, the pet must also be microchipped (cost totaling 6 euros) and registered in the ministry’s database.
RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
Photo Source:pixabay.com
