Microchipping dogs and cats made mandatory in Estonia
The government has approved new pet identification rules requiring dogs and cats to be microchipped and recorded in a nationwide registry.
At present, microchipping dogs and, in the case of Tallinn, cats too, is mandatory, but this had not been a nationwide requirement up to now, and the registry system had been similarly inconsistent regionally.
The requirement had been long considered, but was subject to delays, including on whether to include cats as well as dogs.
Anni Anete Mõisamaa, communications manager for NGO Varjupaikade MTÜ, an animal shelter, told "Aktuaalne kaamera" animal welfare advocates have been waiting at least 15 years for pet microchipping to become mandatory.
"This means less strain on shelters, less strain on local governments, but most importantly, from the perspective of animal welfare, it is a very significant step because the faster an animal gets back home, the less stress it means for them," said Mõisamaa, whose organization runs the Tallinna Loomade Varjupaik animal shelter.
Mõisamaa noted while dogs that end up in the shelters are usually already chipped, this is far less the case with cats: Data show that only 5 percent of cats arriving at shelters are chipped. When "Aktuaalne kaamera" visited, there were around 10 cats awaiting a new owner.
The new chipping law, when it comes into effect, will require pet ferrets to be microchipped too.
As for the cost, Regional and Agriculture Minister Johannes Hendrik Terras (Eesti 200) said animal welfare orgs will help out.
The unified nationwide pet registry to be rolled out is replacing the more fragmented system of several such lists. One of the registries, managed by veterinarians, is fee-based and linked to a Europe-wide database. Local municipalities also host pet registries, but these require owners to enter the data themselves – something which is often not done.
"There is now one central registry at PRIA where all animals are listed and everyone has access to it. The registries will be merged automatically, so for everyone whose pets have already been microchipped and entered into a registry, all those registries will be combined and pet owners will no longer have to do anything themselves," Terras said.
Tiina Toomet, a vet, said the hope is more information can be added about an animal than just the owner's name and contact details.
"Perhaps vaccination status could also be added there, or whether the animal has been sterilized or neutered. Maybe some necessary tools could be added as well," Toomet suggested.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Johanna Alvin
Source: 'Aktuaalne kaamera,' reporter Anne Raiste.
