Dangerous species
Pursuant to the Article 73(1) of the Act of 16 April 2004 on environmental protection live animals of the species dangerous to human life and health may not be owned and kept, imported, sold, traded, rented, donated and loaned to entities not authorised to own such animals.
Zoological gardens, circuses and research institutions carrying out research on animals are released from the prohibition of owning, keeping and importing live animals of the dangerous species, while the prohibition of owning and keeping live animals of the dangerous species does not apply to the animal rehabilitation institutions (Article 73(2) of the Act on environmental protection).
The animals of the species dangerous to human life and health are divided into two categories (Article 73(3) of the Act on environmental protection):
- 1st category - including the most dangerous species or groups of animal species which due to their natural aggressiveness or biological characteristics may pose serious threat to human life and health,
- 2nd category - including the remaining species or groups of species of animals dangerous to human life and health.
The minister competent for the environment, guided by the need to protect people from the dangers caused by the animals of the species dangerous to human life and health, establishes by way of an ordinance (Artticle73(11) of the Act on environmental protection):
- the species or groups of species of animals belonging to the 1st and 2nd category,
- the conditions of keeping individual species or groups of species of animals dangerous to human life and health,
- ways of tagging animals of the species dangerous to human life and health.
The ordinance of the Minister of the Environment of 3 August 2011 on the species of animals dangerous to human life and health was published on 22 August 2011, and entered into effect on 23 November 2011.
The authorisation may be issued when an application including the following elements has been submitted (Article 73(5) of the Act on environmental protection):
- name and surname and address or the name and address of the seat of the applicant;
- the name of species in Latin and Polish, if the Polish name exists;
- the number of individual species the application refers to;
- indication of the place of keeping of the animals the application refers to;
- certificate from the poviat veterinarian confirming that the applicant meets the conditions for keeping animal species dangerous to human life and health to which the application refers to, and the conditions preventing the animals escape or incidental contact with outside persons, as well as meeting the conditions set in the Ordinance of the Minister of the Environment.
Tasks of public administration and services, and dangerous animals.