Prospective dog owners should be aware that American pit bull terriers and American Staffordshire terriers can from March 1 no longer be owned without being registered, the Council of Agriculture (COA) has said.
The new regulations were introduced after a series of attacks by pit bull terriers, including one in which a three-year-old boy died after being attacked by a dog owned by his neighbors in Pingtung County in December last year.
The council categorizes six dog breeds as “aggressive”: pit bull terriers, Tosas, Neapolitan mastiffs, Brazilian mastiffs, Dogo Argentinos and other mastiffs.
Photo courtesy of the Kaohsiung City Animal Protection Office via CNA
Animal Husbandry Department Deputy Director Chiang Wen-chuan (江文全) asked owners of American pit bull terriers and American Staffordshire terriers to register their dogs before March 1, as the council listed those breeds in an amendment to the Animal Protection Act (動物保護法).
The amendment, which took effect on Oct. 26 last year, classifies the two kinds of terrier as “breed(s) of animals whose ownership, exportation and importation have been banned by the central competent authority,” he said.
Owners and importers of the two breeds who have acquired or are to acquire their dogs before March 1 must register them before Feb. 28 next year, he said.
The dogs must be registered in the city or county of residence of the owner, Chiang said, urging owners to inform the authorities of address changes.
The act also prohibits the breeding of American pit bull terriers and American Staffordshire terriers, he said.
Government-registered breeders would be allowed to continue to breed the dogs so long as they register all puppies after birth, Chiang said.
However, dogs born after the registration requirement comes into effect cannot be used for further breeding, he said.
Starting from March 1, owners of the two breeds may only sell their dogs to people with experience owning dogs of the respective breed, Chiang said.
Those who breach the new rules would face fines of NT$50,000 to NT$250,000, he said.
However, as the amendment closely defines the breeds affected, owners of other kinds of pit bulls would not face any additional curbs, Chiang said.
As pit bulls are generally classified as “aggressive,” they can only be walked in public by an adult, and must be leashed and muzzled at all times.
Department of Animal Industry data show that as of Dec. 15 last year, 199 American pit bull terriers and 31 American Staffordshire terriers had been registered, while registrations for 2,407 pit bulls of other breeds had been filed.
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