By Alice Kong | Reading time: 7 mins
Two giant pandas gifted by Beijing to the Hong Kong Special Administration arrived on September 26th. The pandas from Chengdu are currently undergoing their one month quarantine period. After completing their quarantine safely, the pandas will be on public display for Christmas.
Panda fever for cubs An An and Ke Ke has been broiling in Hong Kong for months since John Lee Ka-chiu, the city’s Chief Executive, announced to the public on National Day about the panda’s arrival.
An Instagram account created specifically for the two cubs currently has 82.8k followers. Most popular posts about Hong Kong pandas on Xiao Hong Shu, a Chinese social media app, can receive over 16, 000 likes. The topic itself has over a thousand notes written on the app.
Tourists, exchange students, and locals in Hong Kong eagerly wait to see the pandas. Anabella Prodan, a 20-year-old exchange student from Sheffield currently studying in the University of Hong Kong, said she was excited to see the pandas quickly as she has never seen them before.
“I think it’s an amazing opportunity for exchange students like me who come from little towns across the world who don’t have access to zoos or extravagant animals,” she said. “But I’m sad that some of my friends can’t see them because they’re only staying until October,” she added.
Compared to the month-long quarantine required for these panda cubs, other animals arriving in Hong Kong across borders require much longer quarantine periods, with the city having the strictest pet quarantine policy in the world.
How strict is Hong Kong’s pet quarantine policy?
The Hong Kong Agricultural, Fisheries and Conservation Department determines the quarantine period for exported animals arriving in Hong Kong based on an animal’s group, with groups being categorized by the animal’s country of origin.
Countries are divided into three groups. Group I countries consist of animals exported from the United Kingdom, Australia, Ireland and Hawaii.
Group II countries include animals from the United States, Canada, Singapore and Taiwan. Exported animals in both of these groups are not required to undergo quarantine if they have received vaccinations and chips at the age of five months.
The rest of the countries in the world belong to Group III, where all exported animals are required to undergo 120 days of mandatory quarantine. Pet owners also have to pay additional fees for the animal’s stay, HK$90 per day for dogs and HK$40 per day for cats.
Pet quarantine rules of Hong Kong’s neighbors are nowhere as strict. In Mainland China, pet quarantine periods only last for 30 days. In Japan, only a 12 hour quarantine is required for pets.
In Japan, pets are required to have microchip implant records, as well as certificates showing that the pet has received the first and second dose of rabies vaccination as well as an antibody test, according to the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
How is Hong Kong’s tight pet quarantine policy affecting pets and its owners?
Ko, a housewife in her 30s who currently owns a pet dog with her husband in Yuen Long, New Territories, said that the quarantine period for pets in Hong Kong is “far too long”.
“I think that the pet quarantine period should only last for ten days to two weeks maximum,” she said, after comparing Hong Kong’s policy with its neighbors. Ko also said that the pet quarantine periods could affect her vacation plans for the future.
Karen Chan, a retired housewife in her 50s living in New Territories owning a dog and a tortoise, also agrees that quarantine time for pets were too long.
“I think for these Group I Group II countries, it should be more than that,” she said. “If these animals come from developing countries, quarantining for two months may already be enough.”
“If the pets are separated from their owners for 120 days and visitors aren’t allowed, that would make a huge difference. That would be really bad for the pets. I still think it’s too long, but if there are visits allowed then I think it’s manageable,” she continued.
Edmond Chan, living in Hong Kong with his wife and two daughters, has been a dog owner of two for 5 years. He hopes to bring his pets along with his family travels around 2 years later, but is hesitant to believe that these tight policies will be loosened in time.
“I think for the policy to change, it will take longer than expected. Maybe 3 to 5 years?” Chan said. “I think the quarantine period should be shorter. Maybe by half? If pets are in quarantine for too long, it will take them a longer time to adapt to their environment once they are out of it. It will cause fear and affect their overall mental health,” he continued.
Will pet quarantine rules in Hong Kong be loosened anytime soon?
Calls for a looser quarantine policy sparked as early as June this year. Secretary for Environment and Ecology Tse Chin-wan confirms that the AFCD are finalizing a study on “exploring the feasibility of shortening the quarantine period.”
Organizations headed by lawmakers in Hong Kong are also pushing the government to loosen their pet quarantine policy. Johnny Ng Kit-chong, the chairman of Hong Kong Youth Synergy, has been vocal about changing the city’s pet quarantine requirements. Shroffed has reached out to Ng for comment.
In a survey conducted by the organization, it was found that 8 out of 10 pet owners in Hong Kong found quarantine requirements unnecessarily harsh, and 9 out of 10 feel that it was too difficult to even find quarantine spots, as the queue for a spot was too long.
“For many pet owners, the long duration is cruel, and they worry about the negative consequences on their pets that the quarantine may cause,” Ng told news outlets in Hong Kong.
The lawmaker and chairman is also discussing with officials to revise the tight policy with new arrangements, aiming to implement changes by the end of next year.
Ng believes that if the city’s government were to initiate changes in their pet quarantine policy, “the demand would be huge and I believe people would be willing to invest in it.”
Written by Alice Kong
Edited by Renee Law