Animal care
The County Administrative Board is responsible for animal welfare inspections at the regional and local level. If you suspect that an animal is being improperly cared for, please contact us.
The Swedish Board of Agriculture has overall responsibility for maintaining and developing animal welfare in Sweden. Its mission includes coordinating and guiding the animal welfare work of the County Administrative Boards. The operational animal welfare inspections at the regional and local level are carried out by the County Administrative Board. We carry out animal welfare inspections, feed and food inspections, and inspections of veterinary personnel. The aim of our animal welfare work is to ensure the wellbeing of animals and compliance with the Animal Welfare Act.
Report deficiencies in animal care
You need to contact the County Administration Board if you suspect that animals are being mistreated or are suffering. You can report it anonymously if you contact us by telephone and don’t state your name or other contact information. Contact the police if the situation is an emergency or if you cannot reach us.
Animal welfare inspections
The County Administrative Board conducts animal welfare inspections throughout the county. The purpose of these inspections is to ensure compliance with animal welfare legislation. We carry out both preventive inspections (mainly relating to animals used in agriculture), but also conduct inspections when we receive a report of mistreatment by private individuals.
Animal bans entails that a person is prohibited from taking care of animals. The animal ban can look different depending on why the person was banned.
Examples of different types of animal bans:
- Ban on keeping all types of animals; this includes taking care of, owning, or maintaining animals at all. You are, for example, not allowed to take your neighbour’s dog for a walk or watch someone’s cat during their holiday.
- Ban on keeping a certain type of animal or category of animal, for example keeping cattle or animals with hooves. This means that you may keep animals that are not included in the ban, in this case, cats and dogs for example.
- A limit on how many animals you may own or keep. You may, for example, only keep two castrated cats.
- Ban on keeping animals without being supervised. You can, for example, take care of animals at someone else’s facility in the role as an employee, but not own or take care of animals alone.
Who is given an animal ban?
Animal bans are only given out if someone has done something very wrong. They must have seriously mistreated animals. For example, they can have
- seriously mismanaged the supervision and care of an animal,
- abused an animal,
- not followed orders that are important for the animals to feel good,
- received several orders to remedy deficiencies in their animal husbandry,
- been convicted of animal cruelty,
- been convicted of a crime against the Animal Welfare Act.
Animal bans are not punishment
Animal bans are not punishments like fines and prison which are sentenced by a court. An animal ban is a preventative decision made by the County Administrative Board to prevent animals from being mistreated in the future.
How long does an animal ban apply?
An animal ban can be time limited or apply until further notice. A ban that applies until further notice, applies until the County Administrative Board revokes it. The person with the ban can apply to have their ban revoked or changed to a, for example, less comprehensive animal ban. In these cases, the person with the animal ban must describe how the conditions have changed and why the ban is no longer needed.
It is a crime to violate an animal ban
If a person owns or takes care of animals despite being prohibited to, it is a violation under the Animal Welfare Act. Crimes are investigated by police and prosecutor.
The County Administrative Board controls that animal bans are followed
The County Administrative Board makes checks to ensure that animal bans are followed. You can notify the County Administrative Board if you know that someone is violating their ban. Please note that the notification must be as extensive as possible for us to act.
Animals that are kept in violation of an animal ban can be taken into custody by the County Administrative Board, regardless of who owns them.
Do you want to know more?
Please contact us at the County Administrative Board if you have any other questions regarding animal bans.
Supervision of dogs and cats
Being a cat or dog owner means a great responsibility. Above the animal’s wellbeing, there are also demands from society. Your obligations as an animal owner are governed by the Law on Supervision of Dogs and Cats.
Animal stables
If you are going to build or rebuild an animal stable, it may have to be approved before the work begins. The Country Administrative Board will review your planned construction to see if it meets the requirements for animal welfare and animal husbandry.
Beekeeping
Are you a beekeeper, or are you starting or taking over a bee farm? If so, you can register locations for bees. There are also infectious diseases that can affect your bees that you may need to prevent or report.