Owners of German Shepherd dogs in Shenzhen can heave a sigh of relief after the Shenzhen animal quarantine authority struck the dog off a list of violent canines that are forbidden in the city.

The city's agriculture and forestry authorities announced Sept. 18 an initial list of 28 violent dog breeds that were forbidden in residential, business and industrial areas in Shenzhen. The list included the German Shepherd, which is also known as Alsatian.

Many dog owners had called and sent e-mails to the animal quarantine station in defense of the strongly built, long-bodied German Shepherd, insisting that it is "big but docile."

"We organized a discussion among vets and animal experts, and we finally decided to drop the German Shepherd from the forbidden list," said Luo Qiuhui, director of the quarantine station, Tuesday.

Lan Chou, an editor of a forum for dog owners, pledged to Luo on behalf of owners of German Shepherds that all such dogs would be muzzled and chained in public places to ensure the dogs did not hurt others.

Local mongrels remain on the forbidden list because they are volatile and likely to attack people, although quite a number of Shenzhen residents also advocated their cause.

As the 27 forbidden breeds cannot be raised in busy downtown areas, owners of the Tibetan mastiff, Newfoundland and other dogs have to take their pets to the suburbs.

A set of new regulations taking effect July 1 in the city eliminated the costly 5,000-yuan (US$625) pet ownership fee and cut the annual registration fee from 2,000 yuan to a more manageable 300 yuan.

Officials lowered the fees hoping that all dog owners would get their pets registered. They also announced at that time a list of 28 dog breeds forbidden in busy urban areas.

Dogs in the city can receive free rabies shots in April and September, regardless of whether they are registered or not.

(Shenzhen Daily November 23, 2006)