A blow to pet industry, animal lovers cheer

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The decision of the Central government to ban the import, sale and breeding of ‘ferocious dogs’ including Rottweilers, Pitbulls, and Terriers has come as a huge blow to pet lovers, breeders and pet business owners in Kerala. The decision comes in the wake of growing attack and death cases because of such ferocious dogs being reported in the country. Kerala witnessed a boom in the pet business after the pandemic and the subsequent lockdown. The demand for hybrid dog breeds and exotic dogs, including Rottweilers and other breeds, increased prompting many people to invest in the industry. Animal rights activists have welcomed the ban with open arms. “It’s a welcome move and it’s about time the government took such a step. All these exotic dog breeds should be confined to their country and should ideally live in the climatic conditions in which they were born. Illegal breeding and unethical practices are rampant in the pet business in Kerala. We rescue a lot of such breeds, including Rottweilers and Pitbulls, from streets. They are abused and exploited by illegal puppy mills and when they are of no use they abandon them on the streets,” said Maria Jacob, State Animal Welfare Board member and trustee of People for Animal (PFA). Many people took up dog breeding as a livelihood and invested a lot to meet the growing demand in the past couple of years. Pet supermarkets, hospitals, grooming centres and shops selling breed-specific accessories and foods mushroomed in the state.State secretary of All Kerala Pet Owners Association P Rajesh said that many of the dogs on the list banned by the Centre are not ferocious. “Rottweilers are in high demand in Kerala and many people have invested a lot in this business. Most of the dogs featured in the banned list are guard dogs and are used extensively in estates, and plantations,” said P Rajesh. He sells an average of five to 20 Rottweiler dogs every month.

“The industry will lose 50 per cent of the business because of the ban and many businesses including the pet food business will be hit badly,” he added.

Those in the dog breeding industry who have invested a lot are the worst hit by the ban order. “Many people have taken this up as a means of living and invested a lot with whatever savings they had. This is an unorganised sector and now after the ban order, we are coming together. The breeders from the entire country are affected and breeders from other states are agitated and we as a community may challenge the order in the court,” said Desheeb M, a breeder based in Thrissur.