INTRODUCTION TO THE SPECIAL FOCUS

Since its early days, the CARO project has actively sought to promote responsible dog and cat ownership. It has pioneered this issue in the EU by identifying its key elements, which include personal commitment on the part of individual pet owners and legislative action at the Member State and European level, together with public information and education campaigns and systematic birth control.On the legislative front, mandatory Identification and Registration (I&R) of companion animals has been singled out as a fundamental tool to promote companion animal welfare.

EU-wide I&R would have numerous positive effects: helping to reunite lost or stolen pets with their families; combating illegal breeding activities, which cause immense animal suffering and countless deaths; preventing abandonment of pets and overpopulation of strays; and detecting possible sources of epidemics and other health risks.

Some politicians, at all levels, have tried to argue that such a Europe-wide system is not feasible. However, it is a realistic goal, as has been demonstrated by the CARO EU Canine Experts group and in many conferences, workshops and seminars. Indeed, in some Member States best practices are already in place – even at the EU level. With the aim of pointing out concrete ways forward, the CARO websites will use their Special Focus section over the next few months to share I&R-related information we have collated. Forming the basis of a sustainable solution strategy, it will present the views and experience of individual experts and organisations that have been actively working on the I&R front. These documents will represent the wide range of issues that should be addressed in an effective I&R strategy, and we trust that you will find them both interesting and useful.

We hope that the sharing of this information will also help to generate the political will within the EU institutions to establish an EU-wide harmonised I&R system, which would help millions of animals and the families they live with. In the longer term, it might even result in there being no more abandoned animals in shelters and in the streets.

New web content will be added regularly, so we invite you to visit this site regularly. To receive regular updates, join our Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn pages, or subscribe to our newsletter. You can also use our hashtag #IRFocus.

INDEX

The reasons why identification and registration of all dogs and cats is necessary
The 10 CAROdog/cat commandments for responsible ownership for governments
Key requirements for a secure and compatible system of identification and registration of dogs and cats in Europe
Monthly contributions: July (Overview of the German speaking countries I&R system) , August, September, October, November, December, January

WHY IDENTIFICATION AND REGISTRATION OF ALL DOGS AND CATS IS NECESSARY?

here in German

THE 10 CARODOG/CAT COMMANDMENTS OF COMPANION ANIMAL RESPONSIBLE OWNERSHIP FOR GOVERNMENTS

here in German

green_arrow KEY REQUIREMENTS FOR A SECURE AND COMPATIBLE SYSTEM OF IDENTIFICATION AND REGISTRATION OF DOGS AND CATS IN EUROPE

here in German

MONTHLY CONTRIBUTION

July

Interview with Dr Herbert Müller, CEO of ANIMALDATA, Austria

here in German

Interview with Mrs Denise Delley, ANIS, Switzerland

NB: Of course, Switzerland isn't an EU Country. However, Switzerland is in the middle of Europe and has a long experience of good practices regarding companion animals

here in German

Interview with Philip McCreight, TASSO, Germany

here in German

August

Contribution of Aurelie Van Heyghen (ALLFLEX) and Nancy De Briyne (FVE)

Interview with Monique Megens, President, Federation of European Companion Animal Veterinary Associations (FECAVA)

Interview with Dr Sven Hüther, CEO of Planet ID and ISO Expert for Germany

Please also read the Synthesis of the ICAR Guidelines for Animal Identification August 2015

September

Interview with MEP Emil Radev, Member of the Intergroup on the welfare and conservation of animals

Interview with PD Dr.sc. Dennis C. Turner, Institute for Applied Ethology and Animal Psychology, Switzerland

October

Interview with Michel Schoffeniels, President EuroPetNet

Interview with Dr PAOLO DALLA VILLA, Head of Human-Animal relationship and Animal Welfare Laboratory at the Istituto Zooprofiliattico e Sperimentale del’Abruzzo e Molise G. Caporale (IZSAM), Teramo

November

Interview with Finbarr Heslin, Managing Director of FIDO, Ireland

December

Interview with Dr Rafael Laguens, President of FVE

CAROcat and ABCD join forces for responsible cat ownership by Karin Möstl, Chairwoman ABCD and Marian C. Horzinek, Past Chairman and Webmaster ABCD