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BERICHT (COM(2023)0769 – C90443/2023 – 2023/0447(COD))

Über den Vorschlag für eine Verordnung des Europäischen Parlaments und des Rates über das Wohlergehen von Hunden und Katzen und ihre Rückverfolgbarkeit

A-10-2025-0104

Ausschuss für Landwirtschaft und ländliche Entwicklung · Rapporteur: Veronika Vrecionová

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Written by a language model from the full text only; every figure comes from the text. The paragraph links open the paragraph a statement rests on — check the text itself before relying on it.

Parliament's amended version of the proposed regulation on the welfare of dogs and cats and their traceability lays down minimum welfare requirements for breeding, selling and shelter establishments, and strengthens traceability through identification and registration.

Committee position. The Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development proposes amendments to the Commission proposal, maintaining its main principles but adjusting scope, welfare requirements, and traceability provisions.

Key points

  1. The regulation applies to breeding, keeping, placing on the market and entry into the Union of dogs and cats, but excludes animals for scientific purposes or clinical trials, and natural persons keeping pets with limited litters.
  2. Operators must apply welfare principles covering nutrition, environment, health, and behaviour, and must not subject animals to cruelty, abuse, or abandonment.
  3. Breeding strategies must prioritise health and welfare, prohibit inbreeding except for preserving local breeds, and exclude animals with excessive conformational traits; delegated acts on such traits by 1 July 2030.
  4. Operators must notify and register establishments; breeding establishments need approval after on-site inspection, and a public list of approved establishments must be maintained.
  5. When placing dogs or cats on the market, operators must provide written information on responsible ownership and specific needs, and online advertisements must display a warning.
  6. Animal caretakers must have competences in welfare; establishments must receive advisory welfare visits from a veterinarian within the first year and thereafter based on risk analysis.
  7. Feeding and watering must meet nutritional needs; housing must allow natural movement, with daily outdoor access for dogs, and containers are prohibited except for transport, short-term isolation, or shows.
  8. Health measures include daily inspections, veterinary treatment, and euthanasia only by a veterinarian with operator consent; euthanasia as population management in shelters is prohibited.
  9. Mutilations are prohibited unless medically indicated and performed by a veterinarian; certain handling practices like prong collars are banned, and aesthetic shows must exclude animals with excessive traits or mutilations.
  10. All dogs and cats placed on the market must be individually identified with a microchip and registered in a national database; online platforms must facilitate verification of identification.
  11. Imports into the Union require compliance with welfare rules, listing of third countries and establishments, and registration in a Member State database within two working days; non-commercial movements must be pre-notified.
  12. Member States may keep or adopt stricter national rules, must lay down penalties, and the Commission must publish monitoring reports and evaluations.

Who is affected

  • Operators of breeding establishments, selling establishments, shelters, and foster homes must comply with welfare and traceability rules.
  • Natural persons placing dogs or cats on the market occasionally are exempt from certain obligations.
  • Online platforms intermediating the sale of dogs and cats must facilitate compliance with identification and registration requirements.
  • Veterinarians are responsible for implanting microchips, performing euthanasia, and conducting welfare visits.
  • Importers of dogs and cats into the Union must ensure registration in a Member State database within two working days.

Figures and deadlines

  • Breeding establishments keeping up to four bitches and producing three litters or less per year are exempt from certain rules.
  • Foster homes keeping five dogs or less or ten cats or less are exempt from certain rules.
  • Dogs and cats must be identified within 3 months after birth, and within 30/15 days after arrival at an establishment.
  • Registration in a national database must occur within two working days after identification.
  • Non-commercial movements must be pre-notified at least five working days before crossing the Union border.
  • Delegated acts on excessive conformational traits must be adopted by 1 July 2030.
  • The regulation applies from 2 years after entry into force, with some articles applying from 3, 5, 6, or 7 years.

Legal basis: Articles 114 and 43(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union