Call for tougher animal welfare laws after invasive turtle found in Hong Kong
Discovery of 85kg alligator snapping turtle in New Territories pond shows how city has fallen behind in biosecurity, experts say
Hong Kong animal rights activists have called on the government to create a list of approved pets after an abandoned 85kg (187lbs) alligator snapping turtle was found eating fish in a New Territories pond.
They also called on authorities to microchip turtles sold to the public, toughen penalties for letting pets loose in the wild and update the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance before pushing further ahead with a “pet-friendly” society.
Bon Chan Chung-pong, founder of Turtle’s Inn, said he received a call that the alligator snapping turtle had been caught by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department in Tai Sang Wai, Yuen Long, on January 13.
Farmers had been reporting a mysterious decline in the number of fish in a pond, with some bitten in half.
The turtle, measuring about one metre (3.3 feet), was discovered when the pond was drained, and residents notified police and department officers.
Chan, who has been working with turtles for three decades, negotiated the transfer of the turtle to his care instead of euthanising it, and Yoshi is now at Sai Kung Turtle’s Inn Community Education Base.