Seoul to crack down on unlicensed owners of aggressive dog breeds

The Seoul Metropolitan Government will crack down on owners of aggressive dog breeds who don’t have a permit to raise them later this month.

Rottweiler, left, and American pit bull terrier. [JOONGANG ILBO]

The Seoul Metropolitan Government will crack down on owners of aggressive dog breeds who don’t have a permit to raise them later this month.

The city government said Tuesday that dog owners should receive a permit from the head of a local government by Oct. 26 following an amendment to the Animal Protection Act.

Aggressive breeds include five breeds; Tosas, pit bull terriers, American Staffordshire terriers, Staffordshire Bull terriers and Rottweilers. The category extends to the mutts of these breeds.

After a permit request, a team of experts will evaluate whether the dog is docile enough to be raised.

A total of 117 people with 179 dogs are registered with the city government. Only 34 people raising a total of 36 dogs have requested a permit. Five people owning 37 dogs were registered under the auspices of animal protection agencies, making them exempt from the permit process.

Eleven people with 11 dogs have requested exemption due to the dogs’ diseases and old age. The government will look for solutions and discuss the matter further with the owners.

A total of 45 people owning 72 dogs have purposely not registered, require explanations of inaction, or moved to a different region. The whereabouts of an additional 22 people with 23 dogs are unknown.

The city will mail letters to owners who have not submitted their permit applications by Oct. 26, encouraging them to do so. Starting on Oct. 28, it will conduct intensive inspections targeting those deemed to have deliberately failed to apply. If the owners still do not submit the permit applications afterward, legal action will be taken.

Owners who have not received a permit will face up to a year in prison or a fine of less than 10 million won ($7,350).

"We urge owners who have not yet applied for the permit to raise dangerous dogs to do so within the specified period to avoid any disadvantages," Lee Su-yeon, head of the city's garden-city bureau, said.

BY HYEON YE-SEUL, KIM MIN-YOUNG [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]