When bringing a new pet into their family people often lack the knowledge and understanding of its needs, and their duties as its owners. Latvian laws and regulations set up a number of requirements that the owner of a pet must meet. We frequently get questions about the basic needs of pets in our daily work, and more vigilant and well-informed people often observe animal welfare violations. Unfortunately, we still live in a society where a mouse, a kitten, or a puppy is a common gift for a child, a friend or a relative. Not everybody knows that dogs living outdoors must get at least one walk for at least 30 minutes every day, and mustn’t be kept on a leash if younger than 10 months, while dogs living indoors must be walked at least twice a day. If a cat is kept inside house, it must get human contact at least once every two days, while cats over six months of age may freely access the grounds of their owner’s or caretaker’s house, provided the cats are sterilised and vaccinated against the rabies.
A number of Latvian laws and regulations determine the rights and duties of pet owners: the Veterinary Medicine Law, the Animal Protection Law, Cabinet Regulation 266 ‘Animal welfare requirements for keeping and trading in pet animals, for demonstrating pet animals in public exhibitions, and for training dogs’ of 4 April 2006. In this article, the BIOVET veterinary clinic offers a brief overview of both the applicable legal regulations and useful tips helping the public gain a better understanding of their pets’ life.
Selling a pet
A dog may be sold, handing the dog's pet passport over to the next owner:
1. Once dog is eight weeks old, and two weeks after the last vaccination for viral diseases (if it took place at the age of six weeks), or one week after the last vaccination for viral diseases (if done at the age of eight weeks);
2. Once the dog is three months old, provided that it has been vaccinated for viral diseases and the rabies, at least a week after the vaccination.
Dog owners and caretakers must ensure that by the age of four months, the dog is tagged with a chip, has a pet passport, and is registered in the pet register database of the Agricultural Data Centre. If the sale involves a dog younger than four months, the above requirement must be met by the seller by the time of the sale.
A cat may be sold, handing the vaccination record or pet passport (if the animal is chipped) over to the next owner:
1. Once the cat reaches the age of 10 weeks, one week after the last vaccination against viral diseases;
2. Once the cat is three months old, provided that it has been vaccinated for viral diseases and the rabies, at least a week after the vaccination.
Pet parasites
Pets can contract parasites, both internal and external. Hookworms are the most common internal parasite, while lice are the most common external parasite. To make sure that your pet and family are healthy, regularly treat your pet for worms, and if it often goes outside, for lice and ticks.
Worm treatment is also required 10 days before vaccinating the animal. We recommend repeating it 2 to 4 times a year, depending on if the pet travels from its home. Many pet owners believe that worm treatment is not necessary for animals that are kept indoors and do not go outside; this is not true: both animals and humans can be carriers of various parasites. Special pastes, pills and drops are used for worm treatment, while drops, special collars and sprays are used to eliminate and ward off lice and ticks. The dosage of the product depends on the animal’s weight. There are also complex drop products and chewing tablets intended for destroying both internal and external parasites, and their eggs.
When treating a pet for worms, we also recommend doing the same in the family that owns it.
Vaccinating a pet
Completely avoiding contact with other animals and carriers of dangerous diseases is impossible. Protecting the pet from life-threatening infections is a duty of a good owner. Only clinically healthy animals may be vaccinated.
Based on the standard schedule, the first vaccination of a pup or kitten against various viruses takes place at the age of 8 weeks (2 months), and the second vaccination takes place at the age of 12 weeks (3 months). At this age, it is also required to vaccinate dogs, cats and ferrets against the rabies, unless the attending veterinarian sets a different vaccination time, based on the health of the animal in question. Repeat vaccination should be done in accordance with the procedure set in the veterinary drug manual (once every 1 to 3 years).
Sterilising a pet
If you are not planning to use your pet for breeding, we recommend its sterilisation, to prevent unwanted pregnancy, various diseases, and hormone-induced inconveniences for the pet and its owner. Sterilisation involves a surgical operation that completely or partially removes the internal genitalia of the animal, fully eliminating its capacity for breeding. It is considered to be the type of contraception least harmful to the health of the animal.
The recommended age for sterilisation is 6 months, though it can be done later.
There is also the chemical sterilisation option: a drug is injected under the skin of the animal, temporarily blocking the production of sexual hormones. Males lose their fertility for 6 to 10 months after the injection. Unlike surgical sterilisation, this process is reversible.
Vet appointments
Ideally, a veterinarian should meet their patients professionally only when vaccinating them. However, no one is completely immune to diseases, and it is important for the animal’s owner to be observant and present in the everyday life of their pet, knowing its habits and typical behaviours. There are acute and chronic diseases. Veterinary assistance should be sought in both cases, and especially if the animal is injured in an accident, or suddenly starts behaving in an unusual way, with such symptoms as excessive salivation, difficulty breathing, frequent vomiting/diarrhoea etc.
When going to
the vet, take the animal, its pet passport and/or vaccination record, results
of prior examinations and indicated treatment, if any.
If the animal is to undergo surgery, we recommend not feeding it for 12 hours prior to it.
10 commandments of a pet owner
Laws and regulations set the following duties for pet owners and caretakers:
1. Make sure that the pet does not disturb the people living in the house or its surroundings (through odour, barking or howling);
2. Only entrust taking the pet outside the area owned or held by its owner or caretaker to people who can control and physically manage the animal, and ensure that the animal is not a risk to humans and other animals;
3. In a populated area, pick up the faeces left by the pet;
4. If keeping a pet is not possible anymore, find another owner for the pet;
5. Vaccinate the pet in accordance with the Veterinary Medicine Law;
6. When taking the pet to a vet, bring and present to the vet an identification document for the animal, or its vaccination record (if any);
7. When handing a pet over to another person, tell them about the requirements for keeping the animal and its welfare;
8. Keep documents associated with the pet (its passport, or document certifying its origin) and present these documents if requested to by public order control and other agencies;
9. If the owner or caretaker of a pet keeps five or more same-species warm-blooded pets that are at least six months of age at one address within a city or a village, the owner/caretaker must report this in writing to the regional office of the Food and Veterinary Service within seven working days, indicating the owner’s/caretaker’s name, the species of the pets, their number, the address where they are kept, and the phone number (if any);
10. The owner or caretaker of a pet may bring their pet outside the area they own or hold, provided that the pet does not disturb the public, and does not cause threats to the safety, life and health of humans and other animals.
‘You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed.’ Antoine de Saint Exupéry
Kaķis, foto - Manki Kim, Unsplash