A “Code of Animal ill-being”? GAIA and the UWPA condemn a regressive draft revision of the Walloon Animal Welfare Code
Brussels, 4 March 2026 – With the draft revision of the Walloon Animal Welfare Code due to be examined by the Walloon Council of Ministers this Thursday, animal protection organisations are expressing deep concern. GAIA and the Walloon Union for Animal Protection (UWPA), which together represent more than 150,000 members, denounce a text that, far from strengthening animal protection, contains several major setbacks and provisions that are difficult to defend.
Beyond the already widely criticised issue of dolphinariums — which prompted citizens to send thousands of emails to the Walloon government within just a few hours — the reform proposal introduces a number of regressive and incoherent measures.
In particular, the text provides for the creation of a new “dealer” status for dog and cat sellers, effectively shutting the door on a ban on the importation of puppies and kittens and the abuses linked to that trade. It also opens the possibility for pet shops to act as intermediaries in the sale of wild animals not included on the positive list.
The draft also weakens oversight measures relating to tail docking in draft horses and ear cropping in dogs, by removing the obligation to notify the administration of these practices, even though they have until now been subject to strict regulation.
Another major source of concern is the creation of a new status allowing authorities to place animals seized in cases of abuse with breeders or fatteners. Such a provision could result in these animals being sent to slaughter or reintroduced into systems of exploitation, rather than being cared for in a genuine protection-based framework.
Moreover, the draft contains no measures on several major animal protection issues, including fur, kangaroo meat, rodeos, broiler chickens, and the surgical castration of piglets.
The few measures in the text that may appear positive, such as the ban on slaughtering animals at home, remain vague and insufficiently detailed. In the case of home slaughter, for example, an exemption is provided for professionals, without this status being clearly defined.
For GAIA and the UWPA, the text in its current form departs significantly from its original objective of improving protection standards.
“This draft contains several major setbacks and ignores important issues that have long been awaiting action. An Animal Welfare Code should strengthen the protection of animals, not weaken it. In its current form, we should be speaking of a Code of Animal ill-being instead,” says Ann De Greef, managing director at GAIA.
“We are discovering major amendments on the eve of their adoption at first reading by the Walloon government, without any real consultation with animal protection organisations. A reform of this scale requires serious, transparent work in cooperation with the sector,” adds Gaëtan Sgualdino of the UWPA.
The organisations also denounce the working methods of Walloon Minister for Animal Welfare Adrien Dolimont (MR), which they consider problematic. Animal protection groups were informed on Tuesday of the content of the draft provisions, without any genuine prior consultation. The associations also criticise the minister’s attitude, accusing him of branding them liars in an attempt to justify his political choices.
In light of these many concerns, GAIA and the UWPA are calling for substantial amendments to the draft Code and for the opening of a genuine consultation process with animal protection organisations, to ensure that the revision of the Code truly serves to improve animal protection in Wallonia.