Netherlands to ban exotic pets: report

The Dutch Cabinet plans to implement a far-reaching ban on keeping exotic pets and hobby animals. sources told De Telegraaf. The government will present a list of mammals allowed as pets and hobby animals on Wednesday. All other mammals are banned.

"Good news," said Peter de Haan of rescue foundation AAP. The foundation has been arguing for such an approach for years. Its shelter is bursting at the seams because the popularity of exotics skyrocketed in recent years, and people often don't realize the extra care these animals need. "In recent years, we have really seen a doubling in the number of servals in our shelter every quarter. It really has become a 'hype animal.' Simply traded on Marktplaats, while the animal needs specific care."

Servals, an African wildcat whose natural habitat is savannas and open grasslands, are not on the allowed lists, insiders said to the newspaper. Neither are other popular pets like degus and arctic and desert foxes.

The government first implemented such an allowed list in 2015. It tried to expand it in 2017, but that fell through after hobby animal keepers objected and the Trade and Industry Appeals Tribunal ruled that the list had not been drawn up with sufficient care. For the new allowed list, the Ministry asked scientific experts to develop an entirely new methodology to select the allowed animals. An independent advisory committee also assessed all kept mammal species for suitability.

Niels Kalkman of Animal Protection is also happy that more exotic pets will be banned. "The fact that the list will soon be available is a win, also in the interest of the animals themselves," he said. "We greatly applaud the fact that a list is now being drawn up for mammals based on scientific criteria. We hope the Cabinet will soon draw up a similar list for birds and reptiles."