The top administrative court in France, the State Council formally banned the use of glue traps to hunt birds, revoking exceptions that were granted for what was considered a "traditional” practice.

In a statement, the French court said the practice "cannot be authorized" as it violates following a March decision from the Court of Justice of the European Union that banned it.

Courtesy of HKALPO

A giant African pouched rat who spent years detecting land mines in Cambodia's countryside has come to the end of his working days. Magawa, originally from Tanzania, has been the most successful rodent to be trained and overseen by a Belgian nonprofit, APOPO, to sniff out landmines and alert de-miners so they can safely remove explosives. Magawa was said to have helped clear mines from 225,000 square meters (2,421,879 square feet) of land.

Courtesy of Michelle Cheung.

The UK Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal by manufacturers of electronic dog collars in respect of the Government’s proposal to ban the use of these devices in England.

It was argued that the decision was irrational because it originated from an unreasoned change of position on the evidence in respect of the welfare implications of the devices and that there was inconsistency of treatment with other devices, and that the proposed ban was a disproportionate interference with the manufacturers’ property rights as protected under Article 1 of the First Protocol to the ECHR.

Courtesy of HKALPO

Recently, 160 cats and dogs were found by animal protection activists inside a courier company’s truck in Chengdu, as part a trend that sees people ordering a box containing a live animal, sent to them via post. This is despite a ban by the Mainland authorities on the transportation of live animals.

According to social media, it has become increasingly popular for animals to be delivered by these “blind boxes”. All of the 160 animals found were extremely young, at only 1 to 3 months old.

Courtesy of Michelle Cheung

A statement from Environment and Climate Change Canada says Kiu Yick Trading Company has been ordered to pay $60,000 for importing 434 kilograms of shark fins. It says the ruling was issued in provincial court after the company pleaded guilty to unlawfully importing an at-risk or threatened species in 2018, as part of a large shipment of dried shark fins from Hong Kong.

Courtesy of HKALPO

On 28 April 2021, the amendment of the Animal Protection Act passed its third reading by the Taiwan Legislative Yuan, making a gigantic leap towards the target of a comprehensive protective statute for animals in Taiwan, and well ahead of any comparative animal welfare law in nearby Asian countries.

It is hoped Hong Kong will follow closely in Taiwan’s footsteps and continue working towards more protective laws for all animals.

Courtesy of Marco Poon.

On 23 April 2021, the Hong Kong police arrested a 25-year-old student and cat owner for allegedly making an online threat by claiming to have left poisonous substances to dogs over various parts of the city. Police suspected that the man had made the alleged threats after reading about a six-week-old kitten being bitten to death by a shiba inu at the Hong Kong Pet Show 2021.

Courtesy of Nicole Liang.

The UK Government has promised "the highest standards of animal welfare" in the UK as part of the Queen's Speech. Outlining its plans for the upcoming Parliament, the pledges ranged from improving standards in zoos to mandatory microchipping for cats. The measures will be covered by three bills introduced over the next year and have been well received by animal welfare organisations, both in the UK and worldwide.

Courtesy of HKALPO

On 4 May 2021, the New York Court of Appeal agreed to hear the habeas corpus case for Happy, an elephant who has lived her life for over four decades at the Bronx Zoo.

This is the first time in history that the highest Court of any English speaking jurisdiction will hear a habeas corpus application brought on behalf of someone other than a human being.

Courtesy of HKALPO

Auckland Council has partially backed down on a proposed ban on several types of exotic parrots that ruffled the feathers of professional New Zealand bird breeders. It had proposed banning the trade of a range of parrots by 2022, including the sulphur crested cockatoo, eastern rosella, galah, and monk and rainbow parakeets - classifying them as pests.

Despite the high level of protection, the trade in turtle and tortoise continues to flourish in India . A 2019 report by TRAFFIC, an international wildlife trade monitoring organisation, found that a minimum of 100,000 tortoises and freshwater turtles were illegally traded between September 2009 and September 2019 in India.

Courtesy of Louis Cheung.