Flanders reaches agreement with Hungary on dog trade

Flanders has made concrete agreements with Hungary to increase transparency in the import of dogs from that country. Flanders and Hungary commit to guaranteeing the health and welfare of the puppies being traded. "One dog in five in Flanders comes from Eastern Europe. But there is still a lack of European regulation," says Flemish Minister of Animal Affairs Ben Weyts, who wants to ensure more animal welfare with the separate agreement.

Every year, almost 100,000 new dogs are registered in Flanders. More than 19,000 of these dogs are commercially brought in from abroad. A lot of problems can arise in this respect, a press release by Minister Weyts states. Amongst others, he points out that tampering with vaccinations can lead to the import of sick dogs.

"As Flemish Minister for Animals, I have been advocating a legal regulation and a European registration system for dogs for a long time," said Weyts. "Because that is still not in place, we are taking matters into our own hands and trying to make agreements with the export countries."

Among other things, they are working on good vaccination management and reducing the stress of the puppies. Efforts are also being made to ensure the traceability of the pups so that it is easier to trace their origin. In addition, the agreement framework provides for research to improve the transport of the pups. The goal is to make similar agreements with the other Eastern European countries from which puppies are imported. "In this way, we can avoid as much animal and human suffering as possible," says Weyts.

(KOR)

© ATTILA KISBENEDEK / AFP