Hong Kong considers heavier fines for pet abandonment following fatal Yuen Long dog attack

Hong Kong authorities are considering heavier fines for pet abandonment, the environment minister has said as an operation to capture stray dogs after a fatal dog attack in Yuen Long continued. Dogs in Yuen Long on September 22, 2026. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. Secretary for Environment and Ecology Tse Chin-wan said during a Legislative Council meeting on Wednesday that dog owners bear responsibility for their pets, and that there should be consequences if they give them up. “By the end of the year, we will inform this committee whether there is a need to increase penalties for [pet] abandonment,” Tse said in Cantonese. His comments followed a dog attack in Yuen Long on Saturday that left a 27-year-old woman dead. See also: ‘Deed, not breed’: Owners and experts push back on stigma against ‘fighting dogs’ The victim was cycling late at night after renting a bike outside an MTR station when three dogs chased her, police said, adding that officers had reviewed CCTV footage. She was not breathing by the time paramedics arrived, and was certified dead at the hospital. 5 dogs captured Since the mauling, police and the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) have conducted at least three sweeps around Pok Wai South Road, where the incident took place, to identify dogs that could be aggressive. So far, authorities have captured five stray dogs, three of which are microchipped. By law, dog owners must microchip their dogs as part of the dog licensing procedure. Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department personnel carrying out an operation to capture stray dogs in Yuen Long on September 21, 2026. Photo: Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department. Two of the dogs, both mongrels that did not appear to have owners, were captured on Tuesday night. The AFCD said on social media that all captured animals would be taken to the department’s centre for observation. Last month, a number of rare fatal dog attacks made headlines and prompted authorities to review the city’s regulations relating to canines. In August, a dog – reportedly a Spanish mastiff – killed two smaller dogs in separate incidents in Yuen Long. A woman working at a dog shelter in Ta Kwu Ling was also killed by a dog that the AFCD later said was a “fighting dog,” a legal term that refers to specific dog types with a history of being bred for dog fighting. Fighting dogs – encompassing Pit Bull Terriers, Dogo Argentinos, Japanese Tosas, and Fila-Brasileiro – are subject to strict rules, including having to be muzzled in public. They are also barred from dog-friendly restaurants. Safeguard press freedom; keep HKFP free for all readers by supporting our team Support HKFP | Policies & Ethics | Error/typo? | Contact | Newsletter | Transparency & Annual Report | Apps Make a one-off donation. Hillary Leung is a journalist at Hong Kong Free Press, where she reports on local politics and social issues, and assists with editing. Since joining in late 2021, she has covered the Covid-19 pandemic, political court cases including the 47 democrats national security trial, and challenges faced by minority communities. Born and raised in Hong Kong, Hillary completed her undergraduate degree in journalism and sociology at the University of Hong Kong. She worked at TIME Magazine in 2019, where she wrote about Asia and overnight US news before turning her focus to the protests that began that summer. At Coconuts Hong Kong, she covered general news and wrote features, including about a Black Lives Matter march that drew controversy amid the local pro-democracy movement and two sisters who were born to a domestic worker and lived undocumented for 30 years in Hong Kong. More by Hillary Leung