Dogs without chains. Pens will need to be a certain height

On Friday, the Sejm adopted five of the six amendments proposed by the Senate to the amendment introducing a ban on keeping dogs on tethers. The adopted amendments introduce, among others: requirement that kennels in which dogs are kept must have a minimum height of 1.7 m. Now the regulations will be sent to the president.

The Sejm voted on the Senate amendments to the amendment to the Animal Protection Act prohibiting keeping dogs on tethers in accordance with the recommendations of the Extraordinary Committee for Animal Protection, which issued an opinion on them on Wednesday.

One amendment was rejected – extending the catalog of cases in which the ban on keeping dogs on a leash will not apply – to include shepherd dogs used during seasonal cultural grazing in grazing areas.

However, the MPs did not unanimously introduce an amendment regulating the minimum height of pens and their construction. According to its content the pen in which the dog is kept will have a height of not less than 1.7 m and a durable and stable structure, with constant access to daylight, with a fence in which at least two sides have openings that allow light to pass through and allow natural air flow.

In addition, a person keeping a dog in a kennel, in an unheated room or in an open space will be obliged to provide the animal with a kennel made of wood or wood-based materials constituting a thermal barrier, with thermal insulation, protecting against weather conditions and with a size adapted to the size of the dog.

An amendment was also adopted, which provides that a lactating bitch kept in a pen with puppies until the age of three months is provided with an additional room or compartment in the pen, enabling her to be temporarily separated from the puppies. Before the change, such additional room was provided only to bitches kept for breeding purposes.

The Sejm also introduced three clarifying changes.

Currently, the regulations prohibit keeping pets on a leash for longer than 12 hours a day or in a way that causes them bodily injury or suffering and does not provide them with the opportunity for necessary exercise. The length of the tether cannot be shorter than 3 meters. Lawmakers claim that these provisions are difficult to verify, which makes them dead.

The catalog of cases in which the ban on keeping a dog on a leash will not apply includes keeping a dog on a leash or tying it up: for the duration of a walk, transport, the dog's participation in an exhibition, show, competition, performance, training or training, and during a veterinary, preventive or care procedure. Also excluded are cases necessary to prevent the dog from endangering the life or health of a human or another animal and from causing damage to the animal when the use of another measure is not possible in the given circumstances or when a tether is the measure best tolerated by the dog. It will also be possible to tether the dog for a short period of time under certain conditions indicated by the owner – in a way that does not harm the animal's well-being. For example, a dog would not be able to enter a store with its owner.

Exemptions from the ban will only apply outside the dog's permanent residence.

The Act also introduces the definition of a kennel – a place where a dog is kept in a limited space outside a residential premises and from which an untied dog cannot leave on its own, located in a fenced or unfenced area.

The owner keeping the dog in a pen will have to provide it with a mostly hardened and roofed pen, with an area of ​​not less than: 10 m2. in the case of a dog weighing less than 20 kg, 15 sq m. for a dog weighing 20 to 30 kg and 20 sq m. for a dog weighing over 30 kg. In addition, the playpen will be enlarged with the number of dogs staying in it.

According to the act, the dog must be guaranteed daily exercise outside the kennel, appropriate to its age, health condition and species needs.

The regulations on keeping dogs on tethers and in kennels will not apply to dogs used for special purposes. Dogs kept in an animal shelter will not be subject to regulations regulating the size of kennels.

The provisions will enter into force 12 months from the date of announcement of the Act. (PAP)

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