NEW REGULATIONS for owners of dangerous animals were approved by the government this month by a unanimous vote at the Assembleia da República, Lisbon.
Owners of dangerous animals will have to take exams to test their physical and psychological capabilities to handle such animals as well as a criminal record check, which must be clear of all crimes relating to violence, public health, public order and discrimination.
Breaking these new regulations could result in fines of between 500 and 44,890 euros, with these values increasing by 30 per cent in the case of re-occurrence. This is a steep increase compared to the current fines which only range from 50 to 1,850 euros.
The dog breeds and cross breeds that have been put onto the dangerous animals list includes Fila Brazileiro, Dogue Argentiniano, Pitbull Terrier, Rottweiller, American Staffordshire Terrier, Bull Terrier and Tosa Inu. Breeders of these may only continue in this line of work if they obtain a license by the Direcção Geral de Veterinária, general veterinary board.
This license obliges owners to disclose the species, breed and all details of the animal, as well as having an identification microchip.
These alterations came about as the CDS-PP and PS political parties presented their proposals to parliament one month after a woman was killed by being attacked by four dogs in Sintra earlier this year.
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