engleski

International sales of pets – is EU ahead to common welfare standards?

Despite mayor achievements with unified legal standards on international sale of goods in general, sales of certain types of goods remained out of the loops of politics, practitioners, courts and academics. The international sales contracts with companion animals (pets) being their object match exactly the later. Until recently, the topic of cross- border trade and sales of companion animals occupied a rather small group of stakeholders: breeders and animal welfare activist. However, interest to the matter raises, as European Union companion animal population rapidly grow over the last decade. So far, the area has not been subject to specific EU legislative action. It remained a domain of national legislation with sporadic EU or international law interventions. Socio-economic dimension of companion animals trade is a starting point of this paper, as figures objectively speak of urgent need of legislative action. A spectrum of existing European and international legislation in animal welfare and in international sales is presented. Paper also deals with the qualification of certain types of companion animal sales, addressing equally its pertinent substantive and private international law aspects. Each of the above matters is reconsidered in search for the most feasible pathway to ensure balance among number of cherished European values. Law enforcement in respect of animal welfare, consumer protection and compliance with the internal market rules are the cornerstones of this research. Paper is a starting point for further scientific research on many interconnected issues of companion animals trade and sales, pertaining to either unified standards (European and international), vulnerable protection or cross-border trade.

pets, companion animals, international sales

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