The issue of animal welfare is gradually moving beyond the purely moral or everyday sphere and becoming a full-fledged part of legal regulation. Ukrainian legislation increasingly clearly defines who is the owner or keeper of an animal, what obligations he has, what is considered proper conditions of detention, and in which cases it is no longer just about negligence, but about violation of the requirements established by law. This is of particular importance against the background of the approximation of domestic legislation to European standards, where an animal is considered a living being capable of feeling pain, fear, stress and discomfort.
Lawyers from the Repeshko & Partners Law Firm explained in their commentary how legislation on veterinary medicine and animal welfare affects the obligations of owners, keepers of animals, agricultural producers and ordinary citizens.
When it comes to legislation in the field of animal treatment, most people usually think of the obvious things: the prohibition of cruel treatment, the owner’s responsibility for the dog, a veterinary passport, vaccinations or rules for transporting an animal. However, modern legal regulation of this area is gradually becoming much broader. It covers not only the issue of punishment for violations, but also the approach to how the state determines the appropriate living conditions of an animal, its physical and mental state, the obligations of the owner or keeper, as well as the limits of responsibility for the condition and actions of the animal.
In the process of approximating Ukrainian legislation to the standards of European norms, Ukraine continues to adopt and implement acts that are important for further cooperation with the European Union. One of these acts is the Law of Ukraine “On Veterinary Medicine and Animal Welfare”. This law has existed since 2021, but has only been in force since March 1, 2026.
At first glance, this law may seem like a special document that primarily concerns industrial production, animal husbandry, veterinary medicine, agrarian business, and specialists who work with animals professionally. Indeed, a significant part of its provisions is aimed specifically at these areas. At the same time, some provisions of this law are also relevant for ordinary citizens. After all, pet owners, people who keep poultry, breed animals, or are faced with issues of veterinary documents, liability, or administrative fines, may also find themselves in a situation where these definitions will have practical significance.
The peculiarity of this law is that it not only establishes rules for specialists or enterprises, but also forms a dictionary of legal concepts that can be used in the future by state bodies, courts, regulatory authorities, animal owners, veterinary specialists and other persons. Such definitions are important because they can be applied in specific legal situations, in particular when imposing a fine for administrative offenses under the articles of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses, as well as in issues related to tax legislation.
One of the key concepts of the law is animal welfare, which it reveals as a specific physical and mental state of animals associated with the conditions of their life and death. Such a state implies the absence of hunger, thirst and malnutrition, fear and suffering, physical and temperature discomfort, pain, injuries and diseases, as well as such living conditions that make it impossible for animals to display their typical behavior. In other words, it is not just about the animal being formally alive or fed, but about a broader standard of maintenance, which takes into account its natural behavior, state of health, absence of suffering and appropriate living conditions.
In the field of treatment, prevention and veterinary care, the law defines a veterinary medicinal product as any substance or combination of substances that meets at least one of the prescribed conditions. Such a condition may be that the substance is presented as having the properties of treating or preventing a disease when applied to or administered to an animal. It also refers to products intended for use or administration to animals with the aim of restoring, correcting or changing physiological functions by exerting a pharmacological, immunological or metabolic action. This concept also includes products intended for use in animals for the purpose of establishing a medical diagnosis, as well as products intended for use in animals for the purpose of euthanasia.
In addition, the definition of an animal’s veterinary passport is of practical importance for owners. The law considers it as a veterinary document that identifies the animal and contains information about the owner of the animal, a description of the animal, in particular the nickname, species, breed, sex, age, color, etc., information about its origin, health status, diagnostics, vaccination, treatment, anti-epizootic measures for the animal. That is, a veterinary passport is not just a document for travel or a formality after vaccination, but a source of information about the animal, its condition and the veterinary measures taken.
For liability issues, it is especially important who the law considers the owner of the animal. The owner of an animal is a natural or legal person who takes care of the animal that belongs to him by right of ownership and is responsible according to the law for the condition and actions of the animal. This wording is important in many everyday and legal situations: when an animal has caused harm, when the question of proper care arises, when the conditions of detention are checked, or when the behavior of the animal has become a reason for contacting the competent authorities.
The law separately stipulates which animals belong to aquatic animals. These include animals belonging to certain species at any stage of their life cycle, including eggs, sperm and gametes. These are fish belonging to the superclass Agnatha and the classes Chondrichthyes, Sarcopterygii and Actinopterygii; aquatic molluscs belonging to the phylum Mollusca; and aquatic crustaceans belonging to the phylum Crustacea. This definition is important not only for science or veterinary medicine, but also for economic activities, aquaculture and control over the circulation of the relevant animals.
The approach to wild animals in the law is also clearly formulated. Wild animals are animals other than domestic animals whose natural habitat is the wild, including those in captivity or semi-free conditions. Therefore, if a wild animal is kept by a person, this fact alone does not change its legal nature and does not turn it into a domestic or domestic animal.
The category of pets is closest to ordinary citizens, because it is with it that dogs, cats and other animals that people keep not for business, but for personal purposes, are associated. The law defines pets as animals kept for personal non-commercial purposes. These include dogs, cats, ferrets, i.e. ferrets, invertebrates, except for bees, bumblebees, mollusks belonging to the type Mollusca, and crustaceans belonging to the subtype Crustacea, ornamental aquatic animals, amphibians, reptiles, as well as birds: representatives of those species that do not belong to chickens, turkeys, guinea fowl, ducks, geese, quails, pigeons, pheasants, partridges and ratites, i.e. ratites. The same category includes mammals: rodents and rabbits, except for those intended for the production of food products.
At the same time, the law distinguishes between domestic animals and other categories that may be similar in everyday sense, but are legally different. Terrestrial animals include birds, terrestrial mammals, bees and bumblebees. Birds kept in captivity are any birds other than domestic poultry, including birds kept for entertainment, exhibitions, competitions, breeding purposes or sale. This distinction is important because the same everyday phrase “bird in captivity” can have different legal consequences depending on the purpose of keeping and the type of bird.
Domestic poultry is defined in the law by the purpose of breeding and keeping. It includes birds that are raised and kept in captivity for the purpose of producing meat, eggs for consumption, other products, replenishing the stock of game birds, as well as breeding birds used for the types of production specified in subparagraphs “a” and “b” of this paragraph. It is the purpose of keeping that is of key importance here, since it distinguishes poultry from other birds that may be kept in captivity for entertainment, exhibition, breeding or commercial purposes.
The broader concept of domestic animals covers domestic animals and farm animals kept by humans, including aquaculture animals. Therefore, in the legal sense, domestic animals are not limited to the usual household idea of cows, pigs, goats or poultry on the farm. This is a broader category that can include both animals kept for personal non-commercial purposes and animals related to production, agriculture or aquaculture.
At the same time, in the field of aquatic animals, the law separately introduces the concept of aquaculture. It means the keeping of aquatic animals owned by one or more individuals or legal entities during the stage of breeding or cultivation up to and including their harvesting. At the same time, this concept excludes the harvesting or catching for human consumption of wild aquatic animals that are temporarily kept for slaughter without feeding. This definition is important for those who work with aquatic bioresources or are engaged in their cultivation, since the law distinguishes cultivation from the temporary keeping of caught wild aquatic animals.
Farm animals are defined in the law not only as species traditional for agriculture. They include animals, including fish, reptiles and amphibians, which are bred and/or kept for the production of food products, animal by-products, in particular wool, hides, fur, and other agricultural purposes. Therefore, not only the type of animal is decisive, but also for what purpose it is bred or kept.
The general definition of animals in this law is of fundamental importance, as it shows how the legislator approaches this category. Animals are recognized as all vertebrate and invertebrate animals, that is, living beings other than humans and endowed with sensitivity. Such a construction is important not only from an ethical but also from a legal point of view, because it establishes that an animal is considered a living being capable of feeling, and not simply as an object of possession.
In the logic of legislative regulation, aquaculture animals are also separately defined, which are aquatic animals that are objects of aquaculture. The law also defines animals intended for the production of food products: these are animals that are bred, raised, kept, slaughtered or harvested, that is, caught, for the purpose of producing food products. This concept is important for producers, keepers, regulatory authorities and all legal relations related to the food chain.
A separate section of the Law of Ukraine “On Veterinary Medicine and Animal Welfare” concerns dangerous animal diseases, since it is precisely such diseases that can pose risks not only to an individual farm or owner, but also to the broader veterinary security system. The law defines a list of dangerous animal diseases, which includes foot-and-mouth disease, classical swine fever, African swine fever, plague, i.e. highly pathogenic avian influenza, African horse sickness, as well as other animal diseases based on the results of the analysis conducted by the competent authority.
Therefore, this is a category of diseases, the occurrence or even suspicion of which may require a response from owners, keepers, veterinary specialists and state authorities.
In this context, the law separately regulates the obligations of animal keepers to protect animal health. This approach is logical, since the state places responsibility not only on veterinarians or regulatory authorities, but also on those persons who actually keep animals and can see changes in their condition every day. Animal keepers are responsible for compliance with the requirements of veterinary medicine and animal welfare legislation within the scope of the activities they carry out.
One of the main responsibilities of keepers is to monitor the health and behaviour of animals. The law draws attention not only to obvious manifestations of disease, but also to changes in the characteristics of animals and reproductive material that may be caused by notifiable animal diseases. It specifically mentions the need to monitor cases of atypical animal deaths and other signs of animal diseases. That is, the keeper cannot limit himself to passive waiting for the problem to become apparent. He is expected to be attentive to changes in the condition of animals and to respond in a timely manner.
In the event of veterinary risks, animal keepers must cooperate with the competent authority on the implementation of measures to prevent and control animal diseases. Such cooperation is important, since certain diseases can spread rapidly, and delaying or concealing information can complicate the epizootic situation. That is why the law provides not only for the obligation to care for animals, but also for the obligation to cooperate with the bodies responsible for control and response.
If the keeper has discovered or suspects the presence of notifiable animal diseases, he is obliged to notify the competent authority. This also applies to animal diseases that have not been previously registered in the territory of Ukraine. The law separately mentions cases of atypical death of susceptible domestic animals and a significant decline in animal productivity for undetermined reasons. Notification must be carried out in accordance with the procedure established by the central executive body that ensures the formation and implementation of state policy in the field of veterinary medicine.
In addition to notifying the competent authority, the law separately provides for the obligation to inform the state veterinary inspector and the veterinary medicine specialist who provides veterinary services to the livestock facility. These are cases of atypical death of animals, other symptoms of animal diseases and a significant decline in animal productivity for undetermined reasons. The purpose of such a notification is to conduct an epizootic investigation in accordance with the procedure established by the central executive body that ensures the formation and implementation of state policy in the field of veterinary medicine.
In order to reduce the risks of the spread of diseases, animal keepers must implement measures to ensure biological safety and minimize the risk of the spread of animal diseases. They are also obliged to use veterinary medicinal products in accordance with the requirements of the legislation on veterinary medicine and animal welfare. In other words, independent, irresponsible or chaotic use of such products is not consistent with the approach of the law, because treatment and prevention should take place within the established rules.
Proper conditions for keeping animals in this law also do not remain just a general phrase. Animal keepers are obliged to provide such conditions, and during the keeping, killing, transportation of animals, as well as during the performance of related operations, animal keepers or owners must not cause animals unnecessary pain, suffering, injuries, stress and exhaustion. In addition, they must take all necessary measures provided for by animal welfare legislation.
The law details the issues that the requirements for ensuring the welfare of animals during their keeping should cover. These include the minimum frequency of inspection of kept animals, ensuring proper care and treatment of animals that show symptoms or signs of illness, as well as animals that have been injured. Also important are the provision of adequate space for animals, requirements for the premises or pens in which they are kept, and equipment with which the animals come into contact.
The law recognizes that the conditions of the environment in which animals are kept are no less important for the well-being of animals. The requirements should concern ventilation systems and air quality indicators, in particular temperature and gas concentrations, lighting, including its mode and level of illumination, as well as access of kept animals to food and water. Отже, належне утримання у розумінні закону — це не лише наявність приміщення або формальний догляд, а сукупність умов, які впливають на здоров’я, поведінку, безпеку і фізичний стан тварини.
З практичної точки зору положення цього закону важливі тим, що вони переводять відповідальність за тварин з площини «як вийде» у площину конкретних обов’язків. Утримувач має не просто володіти твариною або використовувати її у своїй діяльності, а стежити за її станом, реагувати на ознаки хвороб, повідомляти відповідні органи у передбачених випадках, забезпечувати біологічну безпеку, правильно використовувати ветеринарні лікарські засоби та створювати умови, які відповідають вимогам законодавства про благополуччя тварин. Саме ці обов’язки можуть мати значення і для фермерських господарств, і для підприємств, і для власників тварин, якщо конкретна ситуація потрапляє у сферу дії цього закону.
Отже, радимо власникам та утримувачам тварин уважно ставитися до нових вимог законодавства: забезпечувати тваринам належні умови утримання, своєчасний догляд і ветеринарну допомогу, не ігнорувати ознаки хвороб чи нетипової поведінки, а також зберігати документи, які підтверджують вакцинацію, лікування чи інші ветеринарні заходи. Для бізнесу, фермерських господарств і всіх, хто професійно працює з тваринами, важливо переглянути внутрішні процедури та привести їх у відповідність до вимог закону. Зараз благополуччя тварин є не лише етичним питанням, але й зоною юридичної відповідальності.
