Animal welfare laws vary depending on where you plan to visit but some of the most highly rated countries for animal welfare include Austria, Switzerland, Kenya, India and Tanzania. Keep reading to find out more about animal rights and regulations laws in each country and how the animals are protected.
Germany is one of the dog-friendliest countries in the world. Virtually every business welcomes dogs and provides them with water and treats.
Problems caused by street dogs
Rabies is a major problem in some countries. India has the largest street dog population on earth, with about 62 million stray dogs, and the largest number of rabies deaths in the world.
Cat-lover territory includes the huge territories of Canada (52.3% of cat or dog photos are cats), China (88.2% cats), and Russia (64% cats). The dogs take more continents, though. Dog posts outweigh cat posts across North and South America, Oceania, and Africa, while the cats take just Europe and Asia.
Dogs are the most popular pet, with almost half of Australian households keeping at least one dog (48% in 2022, up from 40% in 2019). Cats come second, with a third of all households with at least one cat (33% in 2022, up from 27% in 2019).
In Islamic culture, dogs are perceived as 'ritually impure'. Apparently, the Prophet Muhammad once said that dogs may only be kept for acceptable reasons, such as farming, hunting or herding. In these instances though, the dog should be kept outside the home.
In China and Viet Nam, dogs are usually beaten to death with a metal pipe and then bled out from a cut to the throat or groin, but they can also be hanged, or—less commonly—thrown conscious into large drums of boiling water.
Australia is a wonderful country for pets; it has many pet-friendly public spaces as well as a plethora of pet-friendly activities to enjoy with your furry friend. However, the country has strict biosecurity regulations that protect the local flora and fauna from exotic and introduced diseases.
Among the most dog-loving nations are South Korea (9 pet dogs per cat), and the Philippines (7.2 pet dogs per cat). On the other hand, in Indonesia, Switzerland, Austria, and Turkey there are three or four times as many pet cats as dogs.
The "Land of the Strays" is one giant sanctuary for rescued pups. All dogs go to heaven, but it turns out that heaven is in the mountains near Santa Bárbara de Heredia, Costa Rica.
In Australia, around 55,000–60,000 reports of animal mistreatment are made each year to the RSPCA [2], approximately 11,000 of which are made in the state of Victoria [3].
Sweden, United Kingdom and Austria are rated with the highest scores, which is encouraging. More countries need to follow their lead. We are calling on all governments to immediately improve their animal welfare standards, not only for the benefit of animals, but also to reduce the risk to public health.
In financial year 2022, the number of dogs euthanized by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) in Australia was around 2.5 thousand. The number of cats euthanized was just over 6.5 thousand in the same year.
The majority of both Sunni and Shi'a Muslim jurists consider dogs ritually unclean. It is uncommon for practicing Muslims to keep dogs as pets.
Middle Eastern countries and Indonesia have some of the world's lowest per-capita dog rates, in part due to Islamic traditions that cast dogs as unclean. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Indonesia all have fewer than two dogs for every 1,000 people--the lowest per capita ownership rates of 53 countries surveyed by Euromonitor.
Although many Muslims in other countries do not view touching dogs as forbidden, conservative Islamic groups here say the Shafie school of Islamic jurisprudence that they follow views dogs as unclean and requires the faithful to undergo a ritualistic wash if they come into contact with canines.
Since then, the royal grounds have become the Hermitage Museum, and though Russia no longer has queens, cats still reign supreme, both at the museum and in the people's hearts. A recent study of cat ownership in 52 countries found that Russians love cats more than anyone on the planet.
In April, Akureyri—the largest municipality in the country's north, with a population of 19,000 people and some 2,000 to 3,000 cats—decided to ban their feline residents from night roaming outside. Neighboring Húsavík banned cats several years ago from going outdoors day and night.
There are 300-600 million cats living in the world today. The USA has the most number of cats, followed by China and Russia. Latvia, Ireland, and Sweden are three countries, among many, with low numbers of household felines. The lowest cat ownership statistic goes to Spain and Greece, coming in at 10-15% of households.