The Ministry of Agriculture is establishing an environmental social governance (ESG) project dedicated to caring for public service dogs with healthcare and a retirement stipend for their adopters.
A ceremony was held at the ministry yesterday to celebrate the retirement of 28 public service dogs this year.
Each dog is to receive a gift basket of senior dog food, health supplements, snacks and toys, as well as receiving a medal honoring their service and retirement.
Photo: Huang Yi-ching, Taipei Times
Public service dogs, including police dogs, sniffer dogs, patrol dogs and search-and-rescue dogs, serve for four to seven years before they retire and get adopted.
Vanya, a nine-year-old Labrador retriever, was adopted by Zuoying Junior High School general affairs director Hsieh Hsiu-yin (謝秀吟) after she retired as a customs drug detection dog in Kaohsiung and continued to serve as a “schoolkid supporter” at the school.
“I bring Vanya to school about once every two weeks to let her play with students,” Hsieh said, adding that Vanya helps prevent students from dropping out.
A student at the school used to attend classes only one day per week, but the frequency increased to five days per week — despite part-time participation on the dog’s part — simply because she wanted to meet Vanya more often, she said.
“I told the student that she must attend school more often to meet and play with Vanya, as the dog would show up at the school irregularly,” Hsieh said, adding that Vanya’s support for students has earned her a certificate of appreciation from the school president.
Minister of Agriculture Chen Junne-jih (陳駿季) said the mandatory health insurance for public service dogs took effect on Sept. 2 and included all 264 dogs in service at this time.
Retired public service dogs deserve continued high-quality medical care, as they devote themselves to demanding jobs during service, Chen said, adding that the ministry is planning regular health check-ups for them to help adopters monitor their health conditions.
The mandatory health insurance is the first policy of its kind in Asia, marking a significant step in the government’s animal welfare promotion, the ministry said.
The ministry is drawing up a food pension scheme for public service dogs similar to the farmer pension fund, Chen said.
The scheme is aimed at pooling retirement savings for the dogs while they are in service to reduce the future financial burden of keeping them for adopters, he said, adding that the ministry would set up an ESG project to cooperate with the private sector in this regard.
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