Legal Status and Rights of the Pet (companion) Animals and Ensuring Their Harmonious Coexistence with Citizens According to Legislation of Georgia

Abstract

The goal of the present article is to give the reader an insight in the problems of regulating pet issues in Georgia, as well as ongoing trends and up-to-date views in the European countries, to identify the causes of problems of legal regulation and management in the given field and to give an impetus to those interested in the topic and problems to find ways to address the problem. The source of the article was the effective legislation of Georgia, which was duly studied, including the normative acts adopted by the central authority and municipal bodies, as wellas the national legislations of the European countries, international legal documents and the managerial practice of the branch in Georgia. Following the study of the problem considered in the article, it was found that Georgia lacks a single legal framework to systematically and thoroughly regulate pet issues. Neither does the country have a legislative act that would define the status of pets. Consequently, there is no quality and comprehensive legal document at the municipal level derived from the nationwide legislative act. There have been attempts at the levels of both, the central government and concrete municipalities, to address pet issues. However, such attempts are fragmental and non-systemic and fail to cover complex measures. As a result, it is impossible to obtain a desirable outcome in respect of safety of people and animals and protection of animal rights.