To control Shanghai's growing pet population and curb rabies, the biggest city in China has just introduced a one-dog policy, New Scientist's Wendy Zukerman reports.
Starting yesterday, and recalling family-planning measures introduced in 1976, Shanghai residents are only allowed one dog per household.
All dogs in the city must also receive rabies vaccinations, with dog owners who have not vaccinated their pets facing a fine of 1000 yuan ($150) if caught, reports People's Daily Online.
According to an AP report in the The Sydney Morning Herald there are an estimated 800,000 dogs in Shanghai - a city of 23 million people - and only about 140,000 of the animals have been registered. There are occasional outbreaks of rabies, mainly in the provinces, says the report.
From now on, unregistered dogs will be declared illegal - giving authorities the right to remove them from their owners.
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According to the BBC, last year more than 140,000 people in Shanghai told police they had been bitten by an unlicensed dog.
To prevent the attacks, the new rules - which were announced in February but only came into effect yesterday - also ban dogs bigger than 1 metre from the centre of the city. So-called "attack dogs", including bulldogs, will be banned completely, reports the UK's The Independent.
