Cassie Bodin-Duval, Author at Humane Society International

Beata Zawrzel/HSUS Kelly Donithan of Humane Society International is checking the condition of a cat named Luntik, which fled from Ukraine with its owners, who are now staying at a shelter at the reception point in Lubycza Krolewska, while the ongoing Russian attacks on Ukraine, on 23, March.

Update: This program has been extended to 31 December 2024.

BRUSSELS—Ukrainian refugees who have fled the war with their pets in tow will now be able to access free veterinary treatment in 38 European countries, thanks to an unprecedented program called Vets for Ukrainian Pets. Launched by animal charity Humane Society International and partners, Vets for Ukrainian Pets will cover the treatment costs of dogs, cats, horses or other pet animals, up to 250 Euros per animal, for acute care and medication, rabies and other vaccinations as well as microchipping and medical examination required for safe passage through the EU.

Vets for Ukrainian Pets is being fully funded by HSI, with the generous support of Mars, Incorporated, in collaboration with Federation of Veterinarians in Europe and the Federation of European Companion Animal Veterinary Associations. Reimbursements for participating veterinarians will be available wherever the FECAVA has members, including in the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Romania and Poland, as well as Ukraine.

Ruud Tombrock, executive director of HSI/Europe, says: “In Europe’s biggest refugee crisis since WWII, millions of Ukrainians have had to take the decision to leave their country and flee the war. Along with a few possessions, many are also taking their pet animals, who they cherish as family members. The trauma of war as well as the stress of the evacuation journey, can make animals vulnerable to a variety of illnesses and so HSI’s Vets for Ukrainian Pets program aims to eliminate barriers to accessing veterinary care for the pets of refugees. It will provide a much-needed safety net for those families fleeing with their beloved pets so that at no point they feel compelled to leave their pets behind due to concerns about being able to care for them.”

Just days after Russia invaded Ukraine, the European Commission recommended that member states ease requirements for the entry of pets from Ukraine. At least 13 EU member states have since temporarily lifted or modified their import restrictions on companion animals, including rabies requirements. However, there is no standardized policy across the EU regarding the entry of pets from Ukraine. While vaccination and microchipping of animals is being provided at some border crossings, not all animals receive such services and therefore fail to meet the national requirements for entry.

Rens van Dobbenburgh, president of the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe, says: “We are grateful to start this joint project together with our sister organisation FECAVA and with the much-appreciated support of Humane Society International. Through this joint project, we will offer a strong, free pet healthcare response to ensure that those arriving with their beloved pets, many that are vulnerable, receive the care and treatment they need. This is about emergency care, long-term treatment for chronic conditions as well as routine health checks.”

Danny Holmes, FECAVA President Elect says: “We are delighted to partner with Humane Society International and FVE to offer support to refugees’ pets in Europe fleeing the war in Ukraine. It is a testament to the dedication of the veterinary and animal welfare organisations to create such a far-reaching scheme in such a short time.”

Vets for Ukrainian Pets will run until 30 June 2023 and is open for all licensed veterinary clinics to apply throughout Europe, whether owned privately or as part of a corporate group. Those clinics wishing to join the program can apply at apply.vetsforukraine.com/. HSI hopes that Vets for Ukrainian Pets will become a vital part of the collective efforts of European veterinarians to provide assistance to refugees from Ukraine, and urges all practicing vets, whenever possible, to find ways in which to help, by providing discounted or free of charge care where other funding or charity contributions are insufficient to cover the full cost.

Additional information

Vets for Ukrainian Pets will cover the following costs for companion animals and equines of Ukrainian refugees, up to 250 Euros per animal, with a limit of five animals per vet:

Certification/Licensing Requirements—Any costs associated with legalisation of a pet in a European country where these costs are not being funded by national authorities. This may include rabies vaccination, rabies serology, parasite treatment, microchip implantation/registration and official documentation.
Standard Preventive Care—The costs of core vaccinations and parasite treatments to ensure the overall health of the animal, particularly when infectious disease transmission is a concern.
Medication (up to four months’ supply)—The costs of any medication previously prescribed by a veterinary surgeon or to treat a newly identified condition which is considered necessary. This may include animals with chronic conditions whose families may not have been able to bring medication when they evacuated or whose supplies have been depleted.
Acute Care—Treatment for acute conditions where the prognosis following treatment is good. Examples might include treatment of wounds, ear inflammation or alleviation of pain.

Every registered practicing veterinarian in Europe can apply to become part of the programme and can make up to five claims for refunding the cost of treatment for pet animals of Ukrainian refugees by using the website apply.vetsforukraine.com/. In exceptional cases, where a veterinarian has to provide care for a larger number of animals, they should contact HSI at VetsUkrainePets@hsi.org

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Media contacts:

UK: Wendy Higgins, director of international media: whiggins@hsi.org
EU: Yavor Gechev, communications director for HSI/Europe: ygechev@hsi.org

BRUSSELS—Today, the Belgium Parliament took a significant step against the import and trade of animal trophies, adopting with overwhelming support a resolution urging the government to immediately end the authorisation of trophy import permits for certain threatened and endangered species. Among those included are the rhinoceros, African elephant, lion, polar bear and argali sheep, listed in Annex A of the EU’s regulation on trade in plants and animals. The resolution also includes certain animal species listed in Annex B of the same regulation.

Kris Verduyckt (Vooruit, Flemish Socialists), Melissa Depraetere (Vooruit, Flemish Socialists) and Mélissa Hanus (PS, Francophone Socialists), who originally submitted a legislative proposal to ban hunting trophy imports in 2020, expressed their delight at the result of their efforts at this critical step towards achieving their goals. Verduyckt said: “Concretely, it means, based on this decision, that Minister Zakia Khattabi [minister of Climate, Environment, Sustainable Development and Green Deal of Belgium] can now stop issuing import licenses. Her party colleagues have already stated in the Energy, Climate and Environment committee that this will happen soon. I hope that other countries will now follow suit and there will soon be a full ban in place at the European level.”

Humane Society International/Europe praises the Belgian Federal Parliament for its efforts to protect biodiversity and threatened and endangered species. Ruud Tombrock, executive director of HSI/Europe, said: “Trophy hunting has no place in modern society. With this decision by the Belgian Parliament, we are one step closer to ending the unnecessary and cruel hunting of species on the brink of extinction who don’t deserve to be killed for a trophy. We would like to thank everyone involved in the critical efforts made, especially the sponsor, Kris Verduyckt MP.”

The resolution is in line with the major public interest in Belgium on animal welfare. The country has some of the highest levels of opposition to trophy hunting among EU Member States. According to the results of a survey by Ipsos commissioned by Humane Society International/Europe, 91% of Belgians oppose trophy hunting and 88% support the prohibition of importing any kind of hunting trophy at all.

Belgium is not the first country to take action to stop its involvement in this anachronistic and cruel practice that endangers the survival of many wild species. Neighboring countries have already banned hunting trophy imports:

The Netherlands banned trophies of over 200 species in 2016.
France banned imports of lion trophies in 2015.
In March 2022, the Spanish Parliamentary Association in Defence of Animal Rights hosted an expert panel in the Congress of Deputies titled, “Let’s ban the import of hunting trophies of endangered species” where they presented a motion for resolution to prohibit the trophy imports of protected species.
The Honorable Vittorio Ferraresi and Francesca Flati (M5S) introduced the first bill in the Italian Chamber of Deputies to ban the import and export of hunting trophies of protected species.
Members of the Finnish Parliament presented a motion containing a proposal for a ban.
Switzerland and the United Kingdom committed to stopping the imports of hunting trophies from protected species. The United Kingdom policy would be the strictest ban on importing hunting trophies ever.

Some of the initiatives follow the 2021 publication of the HSI/Europe report, Trophy Hunting by the Numbers: The European Union’s Role in Global Trophy Hunting, which highlights the European Union’s devastating contribution to the trophy hunting industry as the world’s second-largest importer of hunting trophies after the United States. From 2014 to 2018, the EU imported nearly 15,000 hunting trophies—eight per day—of 73 internationally protected species. Over those five years, the number of trophies entering the EU increased by 40%.

In 2019 and 2020, despite the impact of COVID-19, European trophy hunters still managed to travel and import more than 5,700 trophies of species listed by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

Trophy hunting, a colonial pastime celebrating the killing of wild animals for bragging rights, is incompatible with the biodiversity ambitions of the European Commission as well as the views of EU citizens. According to the results of a survey conducted in five EU Member States by Savanta ComRes—which was commissioned by HSI/Europe in 2021—over 80% of respondents opposed trophy hunting.

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Press contact: Adeline Fischer, communications manager Europe: afischer@hsi.org; +49 17631063219

Author: Cassie Bodin-Duval

Vets for Ukrainian Pets launched by Humane Society International and veterinary associations in 38 European countries

Resolution unanimously passed by the Belgian Federal Parliament urges the government to immediately stop the authorization of trophy import permits of species protected under international trade regulations.

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