In Shanghai, China, residents and pet experts feel it’s too hard to own and keep a dog, and have asked for the law to be changed:

Shanghai Old Town. Photo by kirillmazin.

Raising a dog in Shanghai costs from 500 yuan ($73) to 2,000 yuan per year for a license, depending on where the owners live. And applying for a license needs approval of neighbors and a neighborhood committee. Dogs without a license will be taken away if found.

… In August a legislator had suggested a ban on walking dog in public areas, blaming dogs for damaging lawns, leaving waste everywhere and disturbing the peace.

“Pet dogs bring most people troubles or even harm, and only a few people fun,” Deng Zixin was quoted as saying by Shanghai Oriental Morning Post.

[Via : Dog lovers call for new law.]

There are many places where local laws limit the number of dogs you can own, but it’s usually more than one dog. In some parts of China though a one-dog policy is being put in place:

While pampered pedigree dogs are a regular sight on the streets of major cities like Guangzhou and Beijing, the boom has spiked the number of strays as pets get abandoned. The number of public spaces getting soiled has also increased, as have the complaints from neighbors not partial to canines in crowded districts and tenement blocks.

On July 1, [city of Guangzhou] authorities implemented the “one-dog policy” seen as a crackdown on the estimated 100,000 unregistered dogs in Guangzhou ahead of the Asian Games in the city next year.

[Via : One-dog policy has China pet owners hot under collar | Lifestyle | Reuters.]

It seems harsh to impose such a limit on people who already own more than one dog.

I also wonder if it’s good for the dogs themselves. Many people do own only one dog, but dogs are pack animals.

What do you think about a one-dog policy? How many dogs are you allowed to own where you live? Let us know in the comments.