Just found this article about new Swiss rules on keeping pets.. and how to properly dispose of Nemo the Goldfish when you've finally had enough of him

Look away if you are squeamish:
"Swiss owners who have been flushing them down the toilet -- still alive -- must now find other methods since strict, new animal protection laws went into effect Monday.... a fish must be first knocked out and then killed before its body can be disposed of, the law stipulates."

My question is how are the police going to know if Nemo was alive or dead before he went round the U-bend?

That's quite bizarre, to me it almost endorses getting rid of a pet when you have had enough of it, even if it is only a fish.

I was under the impression cropped tails were not allowed here anyway (from TFA)

Doesn't matter if the police find out or not. What matters is that animals/fish don't suffer any more than necessary. Plus releasing non-indigenous species can play havoc with the eco-system.

yes, good point. I suppose I'm just confused that there has to be law against it.... isn't it just generally covered by "no cruelty to animals" or something?

In the states you can buy goldfish to use as minnows for live bait. They work quite well as they are I guess a bit more visible.

So I persoanlly don't think its any worse to throw them into a lake known to have a healthy pike population, as they will most likely not make it too long.... and at least they will be "taken care of" naturally.

Personally, I like keeping my pets (whatever kind)

I'll always remember the waste management booklet I got when registering with the gemeinde. It had photos and descriptions on how to properly dispose of zour waste, included were, plastics, paper, cardboard, glass, electronics, furniture, and, a very dead dog.

In fact, here it is, page 15.

Not too gruesome, but still, deceased pooch photo in case that upsets you.

Seems there is a weight limit for your departed pets here.

Can't one just bury one's pets in the garden here?Seems a bit weird that
they always need to be 'officially disposed of'..too correct if you ask me.

You want all pet-owners dispose of their deceased furry friends in the rented garden?

I know the place where they collect the remains is not nice or dignified, but I have them rather there than buried all over the place. I can see how an owner and his family could have a problem with that though.... that's why my father was so quick to dispose of it - before I could get to it.

Amazing why someone thinks a picture of a dead dog conveys more information that "dead dog".

Wait a minute, if you can only dispose of your deceased pets on Monday and Wednesday, what are you supposed to do with dear Fido if he dies on a Thursday in midsummer?

Burying them sounds like a good idea, but what about if they get dug up again? A friends rabbit had baby's (as they do), the mother rabbit bit the heads off 8 of her 9 offspring. Friend had a mass internment in the garden. Next morning there were several rabbits which had been dug up and half eaten by something and the resulting hysteria (from children) meant she threw them away. Illeagally!

When I moved here, my German didn't cover dead dog, so it worked for me, though I wouldn't fancy trying to bury dead pets in my apartment, I'd have to put them under the floorboards. (I don't have any pets).

Goldfish can survive in Switzerland, they're robust predatory fish and already populate waters in some of our neighboring countries. While it's difficult to analyse their impact on the eco system, the law is there for a reason.

In a pond in Küsnacht (ZH) and Katzensee, somebody released American crabs in the 1990s that are a big threat to the local fauna because they are good predators and transmit a crab disease against which they are immune themselves.


I've stumbled upon a similar graphic in the booklet of, I think, Lucerne. A smiling, dead dog icon.

What's notable is that Emmen's booklet is written in six languages!

How is that possible? MSpaint representation please.

It has been a while and I wasn't able to find the PDF in question (it wasn't Lucerne). If my memory is better than my creativity, it looked somewhat like this, but I could be wrong.

You can have your dog/cat cremated. Don't laugh but you pay by the kilo!

you couldn´t make it up could you......only in Switzerland. Glad I´ve got 2 small dogs

We had to have one of our cats put down by our vet and we had her organize such a thing. It wasn't by the kilo for our cat AFAIR, just a set fee. Don't laugh but I had the ashes returned to me in a small simple, pine box. Still looking for a place to bury that.

To Cricketer: I'm positive one can also have this done in the US.

If you have a dog or horse you have to report it to your vet or commune if it dies who will arrange to collect it for a fee.

You can bury your cat/small pet - this is considered acceptable.

Latest regs are on www.bvet.admin.ch