Parliament wants to ban keeping pugs, hairless cats as pets
Dutch parliament wants to go beyond the breeding ban on animals that suffer from their appearance. They also want to ban the trade of animals like pugs, hairless cats, and cats with folded ears, and ban keeping these animals as pets. A broad majority adopted the motion to that effect by the PVV and PvdD, NOS reports.
The Netherlands banned breeding animals that suffer from their appearance years ago. Pugs struggle to breathe because their noses are too short and often have headaches because their skulls are too small. Cats with folded ears have a growth disorder in their cartilage and, therefore, suffer from pain in their joints. Hairless cats often struggle with skin and eye infections.
State Secretary Jean Rummenie of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security, and Nature said he was working on a ban on keeping cats with folded ears and hairless cats. Other animals may be more complicated.
A ban on keeping animals is only possible “if these characteristics always cause serious suffering in each individual animal,” a spokesperson for the Ministry told NOS. “That is not the case for a large part of the external characteristics, so it must be assessed per characteristic.”
A ban on keeping certain animals as pets will only apply to new animals with the identified external characteristics. People who already have pugs and hairless cats as pets may keep them until they reach the end of their lives.
