Torture breeding

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Goldfish with "bubble eyes" are widely viewed as torture breeding.

If pain , suffering , damage or behavioral disorders are caused in the breeding of animals and can thus be traced back to the promotion of traits, this is called torture breeding.

Situation in Germany

The torture breeding of vertebrates defined there is prohibited according to Section 11b of the Animal Welfare Act - unless it is necessary for scientific purposes; according to § 18 para. 1 no. 22 TierSchG is an administrative offense, but depending on the extent, it can also meet the requirements of a criminal offense under Section 17 TierSchG. An example of an exception is the nude mouse (athymic mouse) , which is often used as a model organism . The Animal Welfare Act is rated by the German Animal Welfare Association as too weak with regard to torture breeding in pet animals . The European Animal and Nature Conservation Association criticizes the lack of implementation of the law for farm animals according to its statement .

The report published on June 2, 1999 on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture on the interpretation of Section 11b TierSchG (prohibition of torture breeding) “is intended to help all pet breeders to meet their responsibilities and to comply with the provisions of the Animal Welfare Act, which concern the breeding, to be observed in full. The goal is the vital, healthy, pain and suffering-free animal. ”According to a definition contained therein, torture breeding is given if“ ... in vertebrates the characteristics promoted or tolerated by breeding (shape, color, performance and behavioral characteristics ) lead to underperformance in terms of self-development, self-preservation and reproduction and manifest themselves in breeding-related morphological and / or physiological changes or behavioral disorders that are associated with pain, suffering or damage. "The report mainly deals with dogs and cats , but also affects rabbits , Fish and birds. It contains a list of characteristics which, in the opinion of the experts, should lead to the exclusion of carriers from breeding - the list of the characteristics concerned in the report on the interpretation of the prohibition of torture breeding .

Because of the ongoing problem of tortured and defective breeding in pets, an action alliance of German veterinarians has existed since July 2016 as part of an awareness campaign by the German Association of Veterinarians (BTK). The planned measures of the working group include "in addition to the education of animal owners via leaflets also the development of checklists to assess the characteristics of torture breeding as an aid to official veterinarians". In addition, the veterinary profession wants to work towards the fact that certain dog breeds are no longer so present in advertising, because the frequent depiction of pugs , bulldogs or chihuahuas often only arouses the demand for such dogs.

In October 2017, Das Erste reported on the topic in the show [W] wie Wissen with the title "Pugs and Co: How dogs suffer from torture breeding". Among other things, Prof. Dr. Dr. Martin Kramer, member of the Presidium of the Federal Veterinary Chamber and President of the German Veterinary Medical Society (DVG), has a say.

In January 2019, the BTK set up the "Qualzucht bei Nutztiere" working group as part of the "Qualzucht" working group in order to demand the consistent application of Section 11b of the Animal Welfare Act for livestock and to put it into practice. Education, public relations and advanced training on the topic are to be continuously followed up and expanded.

Situation in the Netherlands

In the Netherlands, the breeding of short-nosed dogs of all races, including mixed breeds, is prohibited as long as their nose length is not at least one third of the head length. The Dutch association Commedia (breed pug) under the umbrella of the Raad van Beheer (umbrella organization, comparable to the German VDH) has stopped breeding until further notice. Commedia and Raad van Beheer are now working on new breeding strategies for the pug breed that are compatible with the animal welfare law in the Netherlands or that are tolerated by the legislature in the Netherlands (as of June 2019).

In a communication from the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) it was announced that the enforcement of this law through controls will start immediately. Breeds particularly affected are:

  1. Affenpincher
  2. Boston Terrier
  3. Dwergkees
  4. English bulldog
  5. French bulldog
  6. Griffon Belge
  7. Brussels Griffon
  8. Japan Chin
  9. pug
  10. Pekingees
  11. Petit Brabancon
  12. Shih Tzu
  13. Bordeaux Dog
  14. boxer
  15. Bullmastiff
  16. Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
  17. Chihuahua
  18. Lhasa Apso
  19. Mastiff
  20. Mastino Napolitano
  21. Staffordshire Bull Terrier
  22. Yorkshire Terrier

The focus is on all brachycephalic races, particularly because of possible respiratory syndrome (BOAS).

Situation in Great Britain

As a result of the 2008 investigative documentary, Pedigree Dogs Exposed , the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) conducted several investigations into breeding practices in pedigree dogs . It was found that overall there is an animal protection problem that must be viewed critically. As a result, the RSPCA presented the Kennel Club with a catalog of measures for the animal-friendly improvement of the grievances.

From October 2010 to 2013 a project of the Royal Veterinary College was created in response to this documentation ; in addition, the nationwide VetCompass was launched.

In February 2012, the second part of the documentary called Pedigree Dogs Exposed: Three Years On (translated: "Purebred dogs revealed: Three years later") was released, which reports on the first positive developments to improve the documented abuses with regard to animal welfare .

In October 2014, the Royal Veterinary College, under the direction of Dan O'Neill, started an epidemiological research project to collect further information on animal health for the VetCompass knowledge pool.

In September 2016, The Daily Telegraph reported, among other things, on the ongoing activities of the Royal Veterinary College to educate, especially about torture breeding in dogs.

Also in September 2016, the Daily Mirror reported about the potential torture breeds of some dog breeds that should be assessed critically.

Situation in Austria

In Austria, Section 5 (2) of the Animal Welfare Act (TSchG) prohibits breeding “which is associated with severe pain, suffering, damage or severe fear for the animal or its offspring.” This includes both breeding and import, acquisition, it is forbidden to pass it on or to display it. The law specifies the following characteristics to identify prohibited breeds:

  • Shortness of breath
  • Movement anomalies
  • Lameness
  • Inflammation of the skin
  • Hairlessness
  • Inflammation of the conjunctiva and / or the cornea
  • blindness
  • Exophthalmos
  • deafness
  • Neurological symptoms
  • Malformations of the dentition
  • Malformations of the skull
  • Body shapes for which it must be assumed with great probability that natural births are not possible

Situation in Switzerland

According to Article 10 of the Animal Welfare Act , the breeding, keeping and production of animals with certain characteristics can be prohibited by the Federal Council . According to paragraph 1, breeds are forbidden in which "pain, suffering, damage or behavioral disorders caused by the breeding goal or associated therewith" are to be expected. This does not apply to animal experiments within the scope specified in Article 17. The term “torture breeding” is not used in the law.

As part of a nationwide campaign against extreme short-headedness in dogs, the Swiss Association for Small Animal Medicine (SVK), the Swiss Cynological Society (SKG), the Swiss Veterinary Association for Animal Welfare (STVT) and the Vetsuisse Faculty of the University of Bern have drawn up a catalog of measures which to be applied systematically from 2018.

literature

  • Th. Bartels, W. Wegner: Wrong developments in domestic animal breeding. Ferdinand Enke Verlag, 1998, ISBN 3-432-28131-5 .
  • N. Peyer: The assessment of breed-related defects in pedigree dogs in terms of animal welfare . Dissertation . Bern 1997.
  • HH Sambraus, A. Steiger: The book of animal welfare. Ferdinand Enke Verlag, 1997, ISBN 3-432-29431-X .
  • A. Ritter: The term “torture breeding” in ornamental fish. (Using the example of the goldfish and its breeding) - Part 1: Legal basis. In: Fischheilpraktiker / Fischheilpraxis. 01/2009, ISSN  1867-206X .
  • Irene Sommerfeld-Stur: torture breeding. Literature review until 2003; Article based on an expert opinion for the ÖKV .
  • Irene Sommerfeld-Stur: Torture breeding - an ethical problem. In: Animal - Human - Ethics. LIT Verlag Münster, 2012, ISBN 978-3-643-50301-5 (In excerpts (online) .)

Web links

Wiktionary: Qualzucht  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Torture breeding in domestic animals. Retrieved April 3, 2017 .
  2. ↑ torture breeding in farm animals. Retrieved December 10, 2017 .
  3. ↑ Relevant breeding goals: cats.
  4. ↑ Federal Veterinary Association: Press releases of the Federal Veterinary Association. Retrieved April 3, 2017 .
  5. ↑ Hamburg Veterinary Association - → Qualzuchten. Retrieved April 3, 2017 .
  6. ↑ bundestieraerztekammer.de
  7. ↑ http://www.daserste.de/information/wissen-kultur/w-wie-wissen/hundequalzucht-100.html
  8. ↑ https://www.bundestieraerztekammer.de/btk/ueber/praesidium
  9. ↑ https://www.dvg.net/index.php?id=1301
  10. ↑ https://www.bundestieraerztekammer.de/presse/2019/01/Qualzucht-bei-Nutztieren.php
  11. ^ Announcements of the breeding association Commedia for the breed Pug
  12. ^ Letter from Minister Schouten
  13. ^ Article in the SZ on the situation
  14. ↑ Epidemiology of Disorders Reported in Cats and Dogs Attending General Practice in England - Projects - VetCompass - Royal Veterinary College, RVC. Retrieved April 3, 2017 (UK English).
  15. ↑ VetCompass - Royal Veterinary College, RVC. Retrieved April 3, 2017 (UK English).
  16. ^ Dr Dan O'Neill - Our People - About - Royal Veterinary College, RVC. Retrieved April 3, 2017 (UK English).
  17. ^ Kennel Club Charitable Trust Companion Animal Epidemiologist - Disorders of UK Companion Animals - Projects - VetCompass - Royal Veterinary College, RVC. Retrieved April 3, 2017 (UK English).
  18. ↑ Qualzucht or “torture breeding” should be a crime . In: The Telegraph . ( telegraph.co.uk [accessed April 3, 2017]).
  19. ↑ web.archive.org
  20. ↑ Irene Sommerfeld-Stur: Torture breeding in the Austrian Animal Welfare Act. ( Memento from July 17, 2012 in the web archive archive.today )
  21. ↑ § 5 of the Federal Act on the Protection of Animals
  22. ^ Animal Welfare Act (TSchG) at the federal authorities of the Swiss Confederation
  23. ↑ https://www.svk-asmpa.ch/index.php/de/masshabenkatalog-kampagne-gegen-extreme-kurzkoepfigkeit-bei-hunden
  24. ↑ https://www.svk-asmpa.ch/index.php/de/pressemitteilungen-extreme-kurzkoepfigkeit-bei-hunden