Pets abandoned to avoid fines as chipping time over

ANKARA

Animal owners, who passed Dec. 31, 2022, the last day for the microchipping process, have started to leave their pets on the street in order not to be fined as they have still not registered them in the tracking system.

Based on an animal protection legislation that came into force in late 2018, the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry started the project to determine the exact number of dogs, cats and weasels looked after by their owners.

The regulation mandated that fines will be imposed on those who do not have their pets registered on PETVET by Jan. 1, 2023, the last day set by the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry for the microchipping process.

While the pet owners who pass the last day will pay 3,469 Turkish Liras ($185) per animal, an administrative fine of 6,072 liras ($325) will also be applied to those who leave their pets on the street after registering them in the system, which animal lovers say is another reason behind leaving animals on the street.

“The number of animals brought to our garden in a month, which is normally 20-30, has now increased to 80-90,” said Emre Demir, the head of an animal welfare charity. “It is very difficult for these animals accustomed to the home environment to live even in shelters.”

There has been an increase in the abandonment rate of small breed domestic dogs in the last week, said Meral Olcay, the manager of an animal shelter in Istanbul. “People chose the easiest route and they abandoned their animals, unfortunately,” she said.

“Although we cannot give an exact number at the moment, the shelters are full,” Zekiye Taş Köklü, the head of another charity in Ankara, also said.

“People are afraid to take responsibility now as they will not be able to leave them after microchipping. This worries people more than the cost of the chip,” she added, noting that increasing food and treatment costs are also a major concern for animal owners.

While the fee for the procedure is up to 250 liras in private veterinarians, it costs 75 liras in the ministry’s provincial and district directorates.

Since Jan. 1, 2021, a total of 1.42 million pets, including 855,105 cats, 574,240 dogs and 25 weasels, have been registered in the system.