The Swedish Board of Agriculture will update The animal welfare regulations for animals held for companionship and hobby.
Birds, rabbits, hamsters, turtles, snakes, lizards and mini pigs are some of the animals that will be covered by the new rules.
Among other things, there are additional demands on how large living areas the animals must have access to.
In 2019, a new animal welfare law came into force and since then has even more research on how the animals feel best about living. Therefore, the Swedish Board of Agriculture now comes with new proposals for rules that will apply in animal husbandry, including the minimum size of the cages and the interior you may have.
– Today we have greater knowledge of the needs of the animals than when today’s rules were developed and in order to promote animal welfare in the way the Animal Protection Act requires, we see that the rules need to be redone, says Kajsa Sefastsson, animal welfare officer at the Swedish Board of Agriculture, in a press release.
– In many cases, the proposal for new rules entails stricter requirements regarding, among other things, space, interior design and that animals that naturally live with species of species should be allowed to do so even when held for company and hobby.
Those animals should have a greater surface to live on
The proposal includes that rabbits, hamsters, birds, turtles and fish should have access to a larger area to move on. For example, mini pigs must also have access to outdoor space and snakes should have room to stretch out completely.
There may also be new demands that social species that feel good about company should not be kept themselves and some animals can be completely prohibited from having as pets. This applies, among other things, to crocodiles and aircraft cores, whose welfare is not considered to be able to secure and which there are already limited opportunities to have as pets today.
The animals that, according to the proposal, should have a greater area to live on:
Birds like domestic hens, letter pigeons, peacocks, quail, parrots and finches
Mammals such as tamillers, rabbits, guinea pigs, rats, hamsters and mini pigs
Reptiles such as snakes, lizards and turtles
Amphibians such as salamanders, toads and frogs
Bone fish like goldfish and cichlids
Source: The Swedish Agricultural Agency
Animals that are prohibited
Animal welfare officer Karin Lundborg says in the Swedish Agricultural Agency’s press release that it has taken into account several factors when it comes to which animals should be banned as pets.
– In assessing which animals to be banned, we have taken into account, among other things, what needs and requirements the current species have on a living environment, social composition and food, but also movement needs and the opportunity to receive care or be killed with an approved method, she says and continues:
– We believe that the species proposed are prohibited are species whose natural behaviors and needs make them difficult to maintain based on the requirements set by the Animal Protection Act. However, anyone who has been banned today as a pet will be allowed to keep that individual’s life out.
The proposal is now on referral and the public’s views and answers to the proposal are now sought.
So large cage required for your animal
If the Swedish Agricultural Agency’s proposal is approved, several of the rules will enter into force on 1 January 2026.
Here are some examples of how large the livestock the pets should have according to the Swedish Board of Agriculture.
Ground -living bird Less than 25 centimeters: living space indoors of at least 4 square meters, or half a square meter per bird at group holding, plus outdoor space.
Ground -living bird Between 25 and 60 centimeters: living space indoors of at least 6 square meters, or 0.6 square meters per bird at group holding, plus outdoor space.
Budgerigar: Living space of at least 4 square meters, or 1 square meter per bird during group holding.
Tamiller: Living space of at least 10 square meters, or 5 square meters per animal during group holding.
Rabbit: Living space of at least 10 square meters, or 3 square meters per animal during group holding.
Chinchilla: Living space of at least 5 square meters, or 1.5 square meters per animal when grouping.
Guinea pigs: Living space of at least 3 square meters or 1 square meter per animal when grouping.
Gold hamsters and dwarf hamsters: Living space of at least 0.75 square meters or 0.18 square meters per animal during group holding.
Snake Less than 100 centimeters: living space of at least 0.75 square meters or 0.37 square meters in group holding.
Turtle Between 15 and 30 centimeters: living space of at least 4 square meters or 2 square meters per animal when grouping.
Mini pig: Living space of at least 6 square meters, or 3 square meters for group holding – plus outdoor space of 250 square meters, or 50 square meters per animal during group maintenance.
(Source: Swedish Agricultural Agency)