The European Parliament is expected to begin negotiations with the European Council in the near future regarding the final form of new legislation affecting pet owners.

The legislative proposal, which was approved today by the European Parliament with 457 votes in favor, 17 against, and 86 abstentions, sets out the first unified EU-wide standards for the breeding, housing, and traceability of dogs and cats.

With nearly 44% of EU citizens owning a pet, the dog and cat trade has surged in recent years, reaching €1.3 billion annually, according to the European Commission. Around 60% of pet owners purchase dogs or cats online. Due to the absence of harmonized minimum standards for the welfare of dogs and cats across the EU, the Commission proposed new rules on December 7, 2023.

Under the legislation approved today by the European Parliament, all dogs and cats in the EU must be individually identified with a microchip.

It also requires the registration of microchipped dogs and cats in interoperable national databases. Identification numbers, along with information about each national database, must be stored in a central registry managed by the Commission.

The sale or keeping of dogs and cats in pet shops should be banned, say MEPs.

To address potential loopholes that allow dogs and cats to enter the EU as pets but be sold afterward, MEPs want to extend the rules to cover both commercial and non-commercial movement of dogs and cats entering the Union.

What will apply regarding microchips, breeding, tethering, and collars

Dogs and cats imported from third countries for sale must be microchipped before their first entry into the EU and then registered in a national database. Pet owners entering the EU must ensure their animals are registered in one of the Member States’ databases at their destination at least five working days before arrival.

MEPs stress that inbreeding (between parents and offspring, siblings, half-siblings, or grandparents and grandchildren) of dogs and cats must be prohibited.

They also want to ban the breeding of dogs or cats with extreme physical traits that pose a high risk to their well-being, as well as the use of such animals (including mutilated dogs and cats) in shows, exhibitions, and beauty contests.

The tethering of animals—except during medical treatment—as well as the use of spike collars and choke collars without a safety mechanism, should also be banned, MEPs say.

The European Parliament will now begin negotiations with the Council of the EU on the final form of the legislation.