Pet law in Parliament for debate and vote 

An Interior Ministry law introducing a stricter framework for pet ownership will be discussed in Parliament at the committee level starting on Thursday before being put to a vote next week. 

Seeking to reduce the number of stray cats and dogs, the new legislation makes spaying and neutering obligatory within six months of a pet’s acquisition (on the condition that it is over a year old). 

Breeders and other pet owners who are entitled to not spay or neuter their animals will be required to send a DNA sample to a special department that will be created at the Academy of Athens, allowing authorities to trace the provenance of new litters. 

Failure to sterilize a pet will carry a fine of €1,000. 

Animal abuse is now also more clearly defined and has been raised to a felony that carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years and a fine of up to €50,000.