Adema writes this in a letter to the House of Representatives. He wants to start with dogs and cats. As examples of animals that have been bred and suffer as a result, he mentions dogs with flat muzzles and cats with folded ears. The ministry wants to make a list of external characteristics of animals that may no longer be kept. The list starts small but continues to expand.
‘Cute’
When choosing a pet, according to Adema, people often choose features that they find cute. They have the best intentions, but often don’t know that animals can suffer permanently from these characteristics. For example, dogs with a too short snout have to constantly gasp for breath.”
Adema writes that the subject affects him not only as a minister, but also as a person. “We make life miserable for innocent animals, purely because we think they are beautiful and cute. That is why today we are taking a big step towards a Netherlands in which no pet has to suffer from his or her appearance.”
House of Representatives
With the ban on keeping pets, Adema is responding to the call of the House of Representatives to ban the import of and trade in fully bred pets. In the Netherlands there is already a ban on breeding animals with characteristics that cause a lot of animal suffering. However, it is still possible to buy those animals from foreign breeders.
A majority in parliament wants to put an end to this. However, the problem is that a trade and import ban is difficult to enforce, because there are no border controls in the EU and you cannot just stop any van.
Two flies
With the ban on keeping animals, Adema thinks he can kill two birds with one stone. Because, according to the minister, a ban on keeping animals is in fact also a trade and import ban. Adema: ”In order to trade or import an animal, a trader must also (briefly) own the animal and that is no longer allowed”, he writes.
Incidentally, people who already have a dog with a flat snout or a cat with folded ears need not worry. They will soon be able to keep their pet. But if the animal dies, they are not allowed to buy another animal with the same characteristics.
In addition to a ban on keeping animals, Adema also wants to introduce a ban on showings. According to the minister, seeing a certain type of pet often or prominently increases the demand for it. That is why he wants a ban on showing pets with harmful external properties, in advertisements and on social media, among other things.
Enter carefully
It is Adema’s intention to carefully introduce both the ban on keeping and the display ban. This includes looking at how objectively it can be demonstrated that an animal suffers from its appearance. It should also be considered how best to maintain it. The effect will take time and that is why it is not yet known when the bans will come into force.
But Adema thinks it’s important that people now know that he wants to end the suffering of overbred pets. “We already want to inform people that this is coming, especially people who are considering bringing a new pet into their home.”
