Exotic pets in Taiwan will need registration, owner approval: MOA

Taipei, Sept. 3 (CNA) Proposed exotic pet regulations in Taiwan will require owners to register animals such as meerkats, snapping turtles, Cayman crocodiles and pythons, while banning private breeding, the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) said Wednesday.

The new rules were broadly outlined during a meeting held by the MOA's Department of Animal Welfare with representatives of animal protection groups, pet owners, related businesses, scholars and experts earlier in the day.

To legally own meerkats, snapping turtles, Cayman crocodiles and pythons as pets in the future, owners will have to fulfill ownership conditions and register their pets with the government, Chen Chung-hsing (陳中興), deputy director of the department, said to the media after the meeting.

Owners will also be prohibited from breeding the animals privately, he added.

In addition, sellers and professional breeders will be required to obtain government approval, provide facilities that comply with legal standards and pass non-scheduled inspections carried out by their respective local governments, Chen said.

Details of the new rules and how they will be implemented going forward will be discussed at later meetings, he added.

However, the official gave no timeline for the implementation of the policy.

Chen also responded to an online statement released Tuesday, in which the Taiwan Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the Environment and Animal Society of Taiwan criticized the department's inclusion of meerkats on its "grey list."

Currently, Taiwanese law only regulates the import and quarantine of meerkats, but once placed on the grey list, they can be legally kept, bred and traded under a set of enforceable provisions.

Citing the popularity of meerkats from films and animation, the groups argued that the move could drive demand, fueling illegal trade and poor care, and urged a total ban instead.

Chen said that since some people already keep the animal as pets, a total-ban is "incompatible with the status-quo."

He argued that by including meerkats in the new policy, owners and the industry can be better managed and improvements made more effective, leading to improved animal welfare.