SHENZHEN broke away from traditional dog registration in 2018 by launching online services that allow residents to register for their dogs’ certificate, look for offline registration offices, inquire about application processing outcomes and learn how to raise dogs in a civilized manner.

Since the online services were offered, the city’s number of dog registrations has surged dramatically. So far, 437,000 registration applications have been received, and the city’s dog registration rate is nearly 100%, which is among the highest in China.

“Adoption over buying” is an important part of Shenzhen’s civilized dog-raising drive, as well as a way to minimize stray dogs. The city has been promoting “adoption over buying” both online and offline since 2019.

Citizens can learn more about dog adoption by following the “深圳市养犬服务” WeChat miniprogram or the “mlszgzh” (美丽深圳) WeChat account. The city’s urban administration authorities also work with animal welfare organizations to create various offline adoption options. Ownerless canines that have passed the Shenzhen dog admission center’s inspection and quarantine are available for adoption. Since 2021, 1,500 dogs have been adopted in the city, according to official statistics.

Shenzhen has entrusted pet hospitals to set up 328 dog microchipping facilities across the city since it began free dog microchipping in 2020. Electronic chips have been implanted in 176,000 registered dogs, suggesting a microchipping rate of nearly 100%.

Shenzhen has also launched a full-cycle dog-raising service mode last year to give comprehensive services for the entire dog-keeping process.

In 2022, the city introduced a technology to identify dogs by their unique nose prints to provide a more accurate and more pet-friendly ID system than the microchip. The technology can help identify dogs that haven’t been micorchipped due to various reasons, allowing all dogs in the city to be precisely identified.

(Zhang Yu)