(MCT)
SHANGHAI (AP) _ China's largest city is setting a limit of one dog per family in an effort to gain control over the soaring pet population and curb rabies.
Cao Yi already was walking her dogs at 11 p.m., hoping to avoid trouble both with neighbors and with the authorities over her brown poodle and golden retriever.
``I'm afraid one of the dogs might be taken away,'' she said.
The rule that takes effect Sunday means either finding a new home for one of her pets or registering one with her parents.
Shanghai's new pet ownership rules also slash steep fees for dog registration _ in hopes of bringing more undocumented dogs onto the books _ and require those walking dogs to keep them on leashes.
Only about 140,000 of Shanghai's estimated 800,000 dogs have been registered under current rules, which require payment of a 2,000 yuan ($300) fee every year for those living downtown and half that for those in the suburbs.
Under the new rules, annual fees drop to 500 yuan (about $75) for downtown residents, 300 yuan (about $45) for those in suburbs, and 100 yuan ($13) for rural residents. Rabies shots cost another 40 yuan ($6) for domestic vaccines or 60 yuan ($9) for imported ones.
Beijing and the southern city of Guangzhou have similar regulations to control rabies.
For some middle-class Chinese, the canine controls are an unwelcome intrusion into their private lives, and a reminder of extremist political campaigns in decades past, when pet keeping was deemed an anti-communist, bourgeoisie luxury.
Whether the lower costs will induce more Shanghainese to legalize unregistered pets or really get rid of those above the quota remains to be seen.
These days, the city still conducts occasional roundups of unregistered dogs. Indoor pets, like birds or cats, don't require registration but cities want to keep track of dogs because they are more likely to go outside, where they can form wild packs and spread disease.
Occasional mass outbreaks of rabies _ mainly in the provinces _ have prompted culls of tens of thousands of dogs, and sometimes protests from angry pet owners. But in most cases opposition takes the form of passive resistance; some Shanghai residents just send their dogs to stay with friends or relatives until it seems safe to bring them home.
``Some of my friends from the dog lovers club say they don't want to register their pets because they don't take them outside, to keep them clean,'' said Cao.
While pedigreed animals can cost thousands of dollars, inexpensive breeds can be easily bought without any enforcement of requirements for annual rabies' vaccines. Many first-time pet owners don't bother to spay or neuter their animals and eventually abandon them when they grow tired of the burdens of keeping an animal. Bands of strays can be seen in the city's suburbs.
A recent pet population explosion has brought on a spike in rabies infections. About 2,500 people die of the disease each year in China. In big, crowded cities like Shanghai, home to 23 million people, police say they handle thousands of complaints over dog bites each year.
Wang Ruimei, a retired hospital worker, says she had to pay 2,000 yuan ($300) to get her huge black dog back after it ran away several years ago when spooked by firecrackers and was seized by animal control authorities.
``At first we decided to forget about it, but then we missed him too much. It's a lot of fun having a dog for company, sometimes better than some people,'' Wang said. ``But one dog is enough.''
Ada Xu, a 35-year-old office worker, already was paying the required fees for her beloved ``Tata,'' a brown Pekinese.
``It's expensive, but I can afford it. And anyway I don't care whether or not I can have another dog,'' she said.
Not all Shanghainese are dog lovers, and for Yang Wei, who has found herself stuck in situations where a dog was blocking her way, the prospect of more vigorous enforcement of leash laws is welcome.
``I think the one-dog policy is a good one. Otherwise, it may be quite annoying for neighbors,'' she said.
상하이, 가구당 애완견 한 마리로 규제
중국 최대 도시 상하이가 15일부터 한 집당 한 마리의 개만 키울 수 있도록 하는 애완견 규제 제도를 도입했다.
이 조치는 애완동물 증가를 억제하고 광견병 발생도 줄이는 데 목적이 있지만 개를 좋아하는 사람들에게는 무척 신경 쓰이는 일이 되고 있다.
이 조치가 시행되기 하루 전인 14일 이차오라는 여성은 밤 11시에 갈색 푸들과 금색 골든 리트리버 종인 두 마리의 애완견을 데리고 산책을 나왔다.
이 여성은 이웃이나 당국과 마찰을 피하려고 일부러 늦은 시간에 나왔다면서 "개 한 마리를 빼앗길까 봐 겁난다"고 말했다.
한 집 한 마리 제도가 시행되면 개가 두 마리 이상인 집은 다른 사람에게 나눠주거나 부모 이름을 빌려서라도 따로 등록해야 한다.
상하이시는 이번 조치와 함께 애완견 등록에 필요한 비용도 대폭 낮췄다.
애완견 등록을 늘려 통제를 강화하고 개 목걸이를 채워 데리고 다니도록 유도하기 위해서다.
애완견을 등록시키면 도심지에서는 한 마리당 매년 2천위안(약 34만원), 외곽에 서는 그 절반을 내야 했지만 이제는 도심지 500위안(8만4천원), 외곽 300위안(5만40 0원), 시골에서는 100위안(1만6천800원)만 내면 된다.
상하이에는 80만 마리의 개가 있는 것으로 추산되고 있지만 실제 등록된 개는 14만마리에 불과하다.
상하이 외에 베이징과 광저우 등의 대도시에서도 비슷한 규제 조치가 시행되고 있다.
하지만 중산층 중국인들은 이런 규제를 사생활의 간섭으로 받아들이며 달가워하지 않고 있다.
이들에게 이런 조치는 애완동물 사육을 반공산주의에다 부르주아 사치로 몰아세 우던 과거 정권의 정치 선전 폐해에 대한 기억까지 되살리고 있다.
상하이시의 이번 조치가 무등록 애완견 등록을 높이고 허용된 범위 이상의 애완견을 없애는 효과를 낼지는 두고 보아야 한다.
중국에서 광견병 급증이 문제가 되고 있는 것은 사실이다.
광견병에 걸려 사망한 사람이 지난해만도 2천500명에 달할 정도이다.
2천300만명이 거주하는 상하이 같은 대도시에서는 개에 물렸다는 피해자들이 한 해 수천 혹은 수만명에 달한다고 경찰은 밝히고 있다.
(연합뉴스)