German laws govern pets off base

***image1***German animal protection law govern the cohabitation of people and pets.
• People keeping, caring or having to care for an animal are not allowed to limit the animal’s opportunity for species-specific movement (such as within crates) in a way that the animal suffers from pain, diseases or injuries.
• A dog should not stay alone without being walked for more than five hours.
• A dog being kept indoors needs proper exercise and should be taken out for walks several times a day. Recommended is at least one hour total per day.
• It is not allowed to chain up a dog within an apartment or keep it locked in a separate room.
• The German-American Community office reminds Americans to consider what happens to pets when the owners go on leave or deploy.
• Dogs may not be kept for hours on balconies, in basement rooms and bathrooms or in the sun during hot weather.
• Violations of the law can result in a prison sentence of up to three years or a fine of up to €25,000.
• Americans who feel they cannot care properly for their pets, or take them back to the states can donate them to the local animal shelter (Tierheim) Altes Forsthaus 11 in Kaiserslautern-Einsiedlerhof. Healthy animals are not put to sleep. For information in English, call 0631-350-3666.
Volunteer dog walkers are accepted at the Tierheim from 2 to 5 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays and from 10 a.m. to
4 p.m. Saturdays.
Pulaski Barracks veterinary clinic also accepts donated animals in its stray facility. Americans looking for a new pet can adopt animals there.