What animals are still allowed as pets? Here is the new cabinet list

For years, a group of independent experts on behalf of the firm studied 300 mammals. With the question: is it suitable as a pet or not? At the bottom of the line, 30 mammals passed the test. They are allowed to keep as pets.

Dangerous

According to experts, animals that lose weight are not suitable as pets because they are dangerous. Or aggressive and dangerous to society. Also, some animals are banned because they are simply not suitable as pets, as they are only wild animals and have no place in an enclosure. Like the hedgehog, chinchilla and degu. The Russian dwarf hamster will also be banned from 2024. According to the researchers, this animal bites, it does not belong in an enclosure and the animal reproduces very quickly.

Minister Henk Staghouwer hopes to take a step towards improving animal welfare with the list. “I have been looking forward to this list for a long time. I realize that the list has an impact both on the keepers who now keep animals with great love and pleasure and on the sector. But we want to put the welfare of the animal itself and the safety of people first.”

People who now have an animal that is not on the so-called positive list can keep it as long as it lives. But new animals will no longer be able to be purchased from 2024.

increasingly popular

Like the serval, which is growing in popularity. A serval is smaller than a tiger but bigger than a cat. It normally lives in the African savannah. They are hunting animals, like all felines. Tiger cat, it is called in Italy. It is estimated that more than a hundred people own such a serval. People can also get the idea from celebrities like Justin Bieber who has servallen.

Betty Hagebeek has six servals. “Servals are very gentle animals. But it’s like a horse. For a horse you need a stable, for servals you need a big paddock. They need to have space. If you have one, that go.”

Hagebeek sees nothing in a ban. “Good rules and honest information are important and not just for serval.” It is estimated that around 100 people own a serval. But there are no exact figures. Isn’t the minister afraid that people are buying like crazy servals right now? “No, I hope people will think. Animals like this shouldn’t be kept as pets.”