Ministry grapples with definition of aggressive breed of dogs

After recent, often tragic incidents, whereby dogs attacked and killed innocent people, in many cases children, the Interior Ministry is working on amendments to the law concerning registration of dogs acknowledged as aggressive breeds. The draft changes should be ready by the end of the month. However, it is not always easy to clearly identify aggressive breeds, especially if they are a cross-breed. The existing list of eleven breeds would have to be enlarged by the dogs that are mixed. "We would like to introduce permits for the possession of the dogs from the list. It is not excluded that before obtaining such a permit the owner would have to undergo a psychological test. We are also considering the idea of inserting an electronic identification chip into the registered dogs, which would help identify the owner if necessary," said Deputy Interior Minister Tadeusz Matusiak. He also emphasized that fines for breaking the law regarding registration, which are currently a few hundred zloty would be increased up to zl. 1,000. (Rzeczpospolita, p. A5) A.K.