Ban on import of certain dog breeds into Oman

Muscat: Fourteen dog breeds, including Rottweilers and Mastiffs can no longer be imported into Oman, following a decision by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries to ban them.
The breeds included in the prohibition order include Pitbull, Staffordshire Terrier, the American Bull Mastiff, the Fila Brasiliero, Dogo Argentinos, the Japanese Tosa, Rottweiler, Doberman Pinscher, the Presa Canario, Boxer, Boerboel, the Caucasian Shepherd Dog, the Anatolian Karabash and the Great Dane. Any animal which is a mix of these breeds is also banned from the country.
However, the Royal Oman Police and other security agencies are excluded from this prohibition.
This ministerial decree is based on the Veterinary Quarantine Law issued by the Royal decree No. 45/2004 and on the executive regulations of the veterinary quarantine law issued by the Ministerial decree No. 107/2008.
Dr Hussain Mohammed, a Veterinary Quarantine specialist in MAF, told Times of Oman: “These dogs tend to be aggressive and fierce. They are used in some security agencies as guard dogs and are not meant to accompany ordinary people because it can be difficult to control them. They need special training. These dogs can be found In Oman because people have imported them before the issuing of this decree.”
Dr Mohammed highlighted that the breeds of dogs named in the import ban had been involved in a number of incidents across the world, where they had reportedly attacked people. As a result, several European and Gulf countries have banned the import of these particular dogs.
“In Oman, no such incidents have occurred because of these dogs. However, we are not going to wait until something happens and a person in Oman is attacked”, Mohammed added. “This ministerial decree is a precaution that aims to lessen the number of these dogs in Oman, as well as to prevent the occurrence of savage incidents that can be the result of having these dogs in the country. The owners of these specific dogs should have a strong personality,” he said. “If the owner is not strong enough, the dog may attack or try to lead the owner in the street. These dogs have to be well-trained.”
In addition, Varsha Karnik, the co-founder of Omani Paws, a volunteer animal rehabbing and rehoming group in the country, said that although these dogs were not inherently vicious, they had in the past been trained to display their more aggressive traits.
“People buy these dogs to represent masculinity and prestige, and they sometimes cut their ears and tails to make them more masculine,” added Karnik. “They are kept in kennels, and not in the home. There are teams in Muscat that do carry out attack dog training, so this is a good thing, because it will now stop any illegal importing of these dogs. A lot of people do buy them when they are young and train them to be aggressive.”
“The people who buy these dogs don’t necessarily buy them to have them as household pets, and because they are bigger dogs, they can do a lot of damage if they are trained to be aggressive,” she said. “However, I had a rescued pit bull, and it was the nicest little dog. She used to sleep on my stomach and used to keep licking my face. Dogs are not aggressive; it is the people who raise them that train them to be that way.”