A county in Yunnan province is banning pet owners from walking their dogs in public and imposing heavy punishments on those caught violating the rules in order to prevent canine conflicts.
Weixin County’s new pet policy stipulates that dogs must be kept in their owners’ homes at all times and not taken outdoors, local media reported Sunday. People caught violating the rule three times will have their dogs confiscated and killed by the local public security bureau.
A county official surnamed Wu said that the new rule was introduced due to an uptick in pet-related conflicts and disputes among residents. She said locals have been bitten by dogs unaccompanied by their owners, and that there was a recent scuffle between a sanitation worker and a pet owner after the latter’s pooch pooped in a public space.
In recent years, conflicts and disputes involving pet dogs have repeatedly made headlines in China. In 2018, a woman in the eastern city of Hangzhou was severely injured by a dog owner after she tried to shoo the animal away from her son. And in August, an 88-year-old woman in the southern Guangdong province died after tripping over a leash, prompting the dog’s owner to flee the scene.
There have also been several incidents in which people have reportedly killed pet dogs following disputes. However, in the absence of a specific law pertaining to household pets, many of these cases do not result in judicial action.
Domestic media said that they’re looking into the new rule after receiving negative feedback.
A county in Yunnan province is banning pet owners from walking their dogs in public and imposing heavy punishments on those caught violating the rules in order to prevent canine conflicts.
A county official surnamed Wu said that the new rule was introduced due to an uptick in pet-related conflicts and disputes among residents. She said locals have been bitten by dogs unaccompanied by their owners, and that there was a recent scuffle between a sanitation worker and a pet owner after the latter’s pooch pooped in a public space.
