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Lo Hoi-ying

Hong Kong must tighten animal cruelty laws to prevent more dogs from being mutilated and dying while consumer demand for cropped tails and ears in pets makes such practices difficult to phase out, experts have said.
The calls for urgent amendments to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance on Monday followed the death last week of a two-month-old female Doberman puppy from infections caused by ear cropping.
The puppy was found abandoned in Cherry Street Park near Yau Ma Tei with 8cm (3-inch) incisions in its ears, which had been poorly stitched and glued to a paper cup to keep them upright.
Mark Mak Chi-ho, founder of the non-profit Veterinary Services Society, said ear clipping and tail docking were still very common in Hong Kong.
Historically, ear cropping was done in some working dog breeds to prevent injury.
But nowadays, owners subjected Dobermans, which have naturally floppy ears, to ear cropping for aesthetic purposes, Mak said.
“Dobermans are a larger and fiercer breed, so they make their owners seem powerful when walking alongside,” he said.
The painful cosmetic procedure is banned in the United Kingdom, most of Europe, Australia and New Zealand, but is still unregulated in most Asian countries.
“If as a society we do not have that morality and civility, and there is no regulation from the government, animals become a product that is shaped according to the market’s needs,” Mak said.
“Breeders crop these dogs’ ears and tails when they are puppies to make them more marketable.”
He pointed to poodles and corgis, which are often seen in Hong Kong with short, round tails that make them look cute.
“Dogs use their tails to communicate, to express their fear, anger or show signs of aggression or happiness,” he said.
“Docking their tails is inhumane. As a society, if we are indifferent to it and the government does not regulate it, then it will keep happening.”

Although nearly 500 animal cruelty cases were reported in the first nine months of 2024, the prosecution rate was only 3 per cent, official figures showed.
Animal cruelty is punishable by up to three years in jail and a fine of HK$200,000 (US$25,480) upon conviction.
In 2016, a poodle owner was prosecuted for animal cruelty and jailed for four weeks after he let a stranger tie the dog’s tail for docking, thinking it would be painless and beautify the animal.
The owner brought his pet to Mak’s clinic after discovering the poodle’s tail was severely injured days after it was tied. Mak reported the case to police.
An examination of the dog found that its tail tissues had died, with pus flowing from the wound.
Mak said guidelines for Hong Kong vets on their conduct prohibited them from carrying out such mutilations for aesthetic reasons.
“For example, if a dog’s tail was run over by a car and needs to be amputated, then it is allowed, for the welfare of the animal,” he said.
Since 2019, the ordinance has been under review with proposals for amendments to increase penalties and improve animal welfare.
They include making mutilations that “cause unnecessary suffering for the animal for non-medical reasons” an offence, including tail docking, ear cropping, debarking surgery and removing cats’ claws.
“A registered veterinary surgeon may only carry out the restricted procedures on an animal if he or she reasonably considers that it is in the interest of the animal to do so,” a suggested amendment said.




North district councillor Lau Chun-hoi, who has been following animal welfare issues for the past decade, told the Post that local pet culture was still “relatively backward”.
With a burgeoning pet economy, strengthening the law would indicate to society that animals’ lives were worth protecting as well, Lau said.
“Hong Kong’s development is very much focused on the economy and might have neglected education on animal welfare,” he noted.
“While profiting from the pet economy, we have to respect animals’ existence as well.”
Lau said legislators, animal welfare bodies and merchant groups had been in talks with the government to push for the amendments, but opposing voices remained on some clauses.
“For example, the legal concept of ‘duty of care’ on animal owners affects many different parties, so we have failed to come to a consensus,” he said, adding that the proposed laws might involve animals in captivity and those on farms.
While Lau was not optimistic that the bill would be passed within this year, he suggested making amendments in stages, firstly to target “sadistic people” who intentionally harmed animals.
“We can focus on some simpler laws, like introducing higher penalties for hunting, abandonment and poisoning, or disqualifying their ownership,” he said.
“For each day we delay in amending animal welfare laws, one more animal might be sacrificed because of this.”


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Hong Kong society

Puppy’s death sparks calls for Hong Kong to quickly tighten animal cruelty laws

The two-month-old puppy was found abandoned in Cherry Street Park. Photo: Handout

Since 2019, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals ordinance has been under review with proposals for amendments to increase penalties and improve animal welfare. Photo: Shutterstock

Hong Kong vets report higher rates of poor health for online-bought cats, dogs

Hong Kong’s consumer watchdog has urged the public to consider adopting pets, avoid buying animals of unknown origin online and to patronise reputable licensed animal traders. Photo: Jelly Tse

The survey of veterinarians also found more than 90 per cent of cats and dogs purchased online lacked vaccination cards. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

Cats purchased online had higher rates of common feline illnesses, such as cat flu and skin infections, than their store-bought counterparts. Photo: Nora Tam

Hong Kong poachers are leaving more illegal traps in nature areas to catch wildlife, with stray dogs paying the price: animal rights group

An SPCA rescue team helps free a dog caught in an illegal animal trap on the slope of Shing Mun Reservoir. Photo: Elson Li

Poachers are turning to cheap and easy-to-make illegal traps to catch wildlife, but the SPCA is getting reports of dogs getting snared in them. Photo: Elson Li

The SPCA rescue team carry the injured dog to safety after freeing the animal from the trap. Photo: Elson Li

Hong Kong to slash quarantine for cats and dogs from Macau from 120 days to 30

A Ragdoll cat peers out at a pet fair in Shenzhen. Photo: Sam Tsang

Macau is the first location on Hong Kong’s new Group IIIA list. Photo: SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images 

Pet smuggling from mainland China may have contributed to Hong Kong increase in dumped cats

Smuggled cats crammed into a tiny cage, which can lead to the spread of diseases, the SPCA has warned. Photo: SPCA

The SPCA has linked an increase in the number of cats handed into the charity with pet smuggling from mainland China. Photo: SPCA

News

Hong Kong

Society

Two-month-old Doberman puppy was found abandoned in a park with infections caused by ear cropping


Two-month-old Doberman puppy was found abandoned in a park with infections caused by ear cropping.
