Beijing gets 'one dog policy'
2006-11-08 19:24
Beijing - Beijing has launched a "one dog policy" in an effort to curb a sharp rise in rabies linked to the ballooning population of unregistered canines.
"Each family is permitted to raise one dog," the government said in a statement seen on Wednesday on its website announcing the new policy.
"Large dogs, ferocious dogs and the unregulated raising of dogs are not allowed."
"Violators of the regulations will be fined up to 5 000 yuan ($640) and their pets will be taken into custody," it said, citing regulations issued this week.
Rabies has emerged as the biggest killer among infectious diseases in the country over the past five months, according to the official media.
Deaths up 26%
China's health ministry recorded 2 254 cases in humans in the first nine months of 2006, up 26% over the same period last year.
Last month China central government launched a massive national campaign to register and inoculate dogs after a series of rabies-related deaths resulted in the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of canines.
The Beijing regulations apply only to the city centre, but list wide-ranging restrictions on dogs in public places.
Rising wealth in China has led to a boom in dog ownership, but most dogs are unregistered and not inoculated due to high registration fees and costly rabies shots.
Up to 150 million dogs are estimated to be unregistered and unvaccinated in China, the China Daily reported last month, a figure that will make efforts to wipe out rabies problematic.
China already implements a "one child family planning policy" aimed at slowing the growth of its human population, which is the world's largest at 1.3 billion people.
- AFP