Page 59 - 2018 Annual Report Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan

Annual Report 2018 Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan B. Coordinating and adjustment measures for the “No Kill” policy at public animal shelters (a) Based on the three major principles of legislation, education, and neutering, Taiwan’s policy for management of stray animals has included (i) owners taking lifelong responsibility for their pets and not abandoning them and (ii) control of breeding for dogs and cats, thereby reducing the production of stray animals at the source. Reducing strays also protects the safety of citizens and their property. As for cases of catching dogs, which are prioritized according to the level of public risk, the animals are placed in a shelter and citizens are actively encouraged to adopt them. (b) In 2017 the government implemented the “No Kill” policy at public animal shelters, greatly reducing the number of animals euthanized. As of the end of 2018, the government had caught 19,731 animals, a reduction from the 23,608 caught in 2017. Governments at the municipal, city and county level, aiming to deal with the limited space available at shelters and to maintain the quality of life of animals in shelters, adjusted their dog-catching models to give priority to catching dogs that pose a risk to public safety. (c) In response to the No Kill policy, the COA has devoted great effort to guiding municipalities, cities, and counties to strengthen control of the number of dogs by reducing the numbers at the source. In the short term, the COA has neuteured a large number of dogs and severely punished pet abandonment, in order to reduce the number of animals entering shelters and raise the adoption rate for animals in shelters, thereby upholding animal welfare. C. Humane management of economic and experimental animals In 2018 the COA oversaw local governments in making inspections of transport and slaughtering operations on over 415 occasions, and held 38 lectures for animal transport personnel and slaughtering personnel, with 248 people earning lecture-attendance certification. Moreover, the COA continued to undertake education and training related to humane management at institutions that use animals for scientific applications and to pro- actively promote the principle of the 3Rs (replacement, reduction, and refinement). We also held 87 onsite inspections of institutions that use animals for scientific applications. 57