Beijing court confirms dog leash law after animal disputes

A court in Beijing confirmed that residents should strictly follow laws and regulations that stipulate that outdoor dogs should wear leashes to prevent them from hurting others.

The Beijing No. 3 Intermediate People’s Court confirmed this on Thursday, making public pet disputes over the past few years, revealing 11 influential cases.

According to court vice president Xue Qiang, from January 2021 to April this year, the court concluded more than 40 cases related to animal husbandry, eight of which involved injuries caused by unleashed dogs.

“Simply put, the cause of the injuries was that breeders or animal managers did not perform their duties in accordance with laws and regulations or take care of their animals,” he said.

In one case, an off-leash golden retriever threw a resident named Zhao to the ground in a residential neighborhood, breaking his thoracic vertebrae. After negotiations failed, Zhao took the dog’s owner, surnamed Zhang, to court, demanding more than 110,000 yuan ($15,192) in damages, including medical and transportation costs.

The court stated that the golden retriever is a large dog that poses some danger, therefore its breeder is obliged to supervise it when walking it so that it does not harm others.

However, in this case, Zhang failed to attach a leash to the animal on the property, which caused Zhao’s injuries, so Zhang should be held liable for failing to take care of the dog, the court explained, adding that it ultimately ordered Zhang based on the evidence to pay Zhao more than 67,000 yuan .

“Breeders sometimes think their animals are gentle, cute and harmless, but adult dogs, like the golden retriever in Zhang’s case, are large animals with a strong body and lively activity, which means it is easy for them to suddenly change direction , run faster or attack others without a leash,” the court said.

“Therefore, pet owners, especially those who keep large dogs, must use a leash when walking their dogs in order to effectively control them and prevent them from violating the personal or property rights of other people,” he added.

In addition to cases caused by leashed dogs, Xue said some disputes involved pet food and animal care centers as the pet economy has seen rapid development.

He ordered judges to continue strictly implementing the Civil Code, the Animal Epidemic Prevention Act and the Public Security Administration Penalty Act to handle pet-related cases, recommending civilized animal husbandry for residents.