Cat without a chip? The owner faces a fine of up to 10 thousand euros

Although amendments to the Law on mandatory microchipping of cats will come into force only on July 1, the registration of cats is already very active, said Ilmar Duritis, chairman of the Latvian Society of Veterinarians.

According to the Agricultural Data Center, the number of cats registered with LDC as of April 17 this year was 23,852, up from 18,089 last year on April 17.

As we have already reported, the Cabinet of Ministers must develop rules by July 1 of this year to provide for exceptions – in which cases microchipping of cats and ferrets will not be mandatory. However, the exclusion criteria are not yet known.

For everyone else, chipping is a paid service. For the owner of a cat or ferret in a veterinary medical practice (veterinarian) it will cost:

* 9 euros for registering an animal in the database;

* 5.50 euros for the service provided by a practicing veterinarian to ensure the registration of the animal;

* plus – fee for the visit, according to the veterinarian’s price list.

For the absence of a chip and registration, the minimum fine for an individual is 50 euros, and for a legal entity – 100 euros.

The maximum amount for an individual is 5,000 euros, and for a legal entity – 10,000 euros.