Decree of 5 June 2014, containing rules regarding animal keepers (Animal Keepers Decree).

This Decree, adopted in compliance with European Legislation concerning measures on animal protection, and implementing provisions of Animals Act, defines measures and rules concerning animal keeping for various purposes, animal health and animal protection. The Decree defines: farm treatment Plan, consisting in: an analysis of the animal health situation, the use of veterinary medicinal products, and an overview of measures to be taken to improve the health situation of animals; cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, swine, poultry; rabbits; pet animals; semen collection facility. The Decree concerns the following matters: prohibited behaviours towards animals, including: getting rid of an animal, kicking, hitting an animal in such a way that this causes injury, subjecting an animal to an explosive, corrosive or burning substance, grazing an animal on land that cannot be grazed or on land that is difficult to graze, using a mean of transport propelled by an animal if it clearly not suitable for this, tying or leashing an animal with an object that can inflict pain on the animal, use of equipments suitable for delivering electric shocks with exceptions; criteria for designation of animal species, and classification of animals in categories, including the social or biosocial needs of the animals; caring for animals; cases in which animals may be killed and related methods, including preventing immediate danger to humans or animals; reproduction techniques and technologies.
Further matters covered by this Decree include: veterinary procedures and veterinary medicines, use of a veterinary medicinal product by veterinarians and by animal keepers, and related restrictions; reporting and monitoring animal diseases and zoonoses; vaccination against defined diseases; gathering of animals; measures concerning transport of animals according to the species; specific provisions for keeping sheep and goats; identification and registration of animals; measures concerning internal and international trade of animals; keeping animals for agricultural purposes; care of production animals, including providing them with feed and granting sufficient space for their physiological and ethological needs; veterinary procedures and use of veterinary medicines in production animals; prohibition on placing on the market as a food-producing animal, and delivering for slaughter an animal whose meat contains a pharmacologically active substance defined in this Decree; measures for cleaning and disinfecting location and means of transport; specific measures to ensure animal welfare for the different animal species and categories.
The Decree also concerns: keeping animals for non-agricultural purposes, including: breeding companion animals, keeping and capturing dogs, carrying out business activities concerning companion animals; health measures and vaccination of cats and dogs; identification documents for dogs; keeping wild animals in zoos; specific requirements for operating a zoo, including the issuance of a permit; species conservation and educational programmes; keeping birds at exhibition and similar events; detailed measures for killing animals to obtain animal products.