Taiwan News 
Date: 2018/06/20
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News)—According to a Taipei’s Animal Protection Office (APO) press

(By Wikimedia Commons)

release on Monday, Taipei topped Taiwan’s six municipalities in fines imposed on pet abandonment between 2015 and May 2018, doling out fines totaling NT$ 1,955,000 on 64 confirmed pet abandonment cases during the period.

The APO said the penalty for owners confirmed to have abandoned their pet is NT$30,000 or higher, adding that severe cases may be slapped with a penalty of at least NT$50,000 and may be banned from keeping pets for life.

The agency said many of the owners who have abandoned pets are financially strapped. As of the end of April 2018, among the 50 offenders with outstanding fines, 46 of them had annual income less than NT$50,000. The minimum monetary penalties were usually imposed to this group of offenders, the APO said, adding that even so the agency would resort to compulsory implementation and conduct regular property inspections to heighten enforcement.    [FULL  STORY]