Glarus

The cantonal introduction act to the animal protection and animal disease law (Art. 27 EG zum TSchG und TSG) requires owners of certain dog breeds to apply for a keeping permit from ALT GR before or at the latest 14 days after taking over the dog. The Glarus Veterinary Ordinance (VetV; GS IX D/633/2, as of 1 January 2024) governs the permit conditions: owners must complete the six-hour Cynological Training Course KAL 1 (replacing the SKN abolished since 2017) within one year and pass a recognised obedience and handling exam by the dog's 24th month of life. As of 1 January 2024, two breeds (letters g and j) were removed from the permit list — the breed list now comprises 12 entries plus crossbreeds.

All dog owners in the canton of Glarus must comply with federal obligations (microchip, AMICUS, liability insurance) as well as cantonal special rules. For list dogs, the permit requirements additionally apply.

Dog tax exemptions

Exempt from the dog tax are: guide dogs for the blind (in training and trained, BFHS certificate), therapy dogs (VTHS, regularly in use), police service dogs (police command certificate), wildlife protection service dogs, disaster and area search dogs (SVKA card), avalanche dogs (SAC certificate), certain class III working dogs, army service dogs and flock protection dogs (Art. 33 VetV GL).

Owners of dogs with increased risk potential in the canton of Glarus must provide two training certificates: a course certificate (KAL 1) and a passed obedience and handling exam. Both certificates must be provided anew for each new list dog (Art. 23a para. 2 VetV GL).

1. 1

   Step 1: Complete KAL-1 course (within 1 year)

   The six-hour KAL-1 course (theory + practice) must be completed within one year of acquiring the dog with a trainer recognised by ALT GR. The current list of KAL trainers is available at alt.gr.ch.

2. 2

   Step 2: Handling exam by the 24th month of life

   The recognised obedience and handling exam (e.g. NHB, BH, VPG, Obedience) must be passed by the end of the dog's 24th month of life. For dogs taken over at over 12 months of age, a deadline of 1 year from takeover applies (Art. 25 VetV GL).

3. 3

   Submit certificates within 14 days

   Copies of the KAL-1 certificate and the passed exam must be submitted within 14 days of receipt to ALT GR, Hundewesen, Ringstrasse 10, 7001 Chur (Art. 23 para. 3 VetV GL).

4. 4

   Additional requirements for breeds a–f (high risk)

   Owners of American Staffordshire Terrier, American Pit Bull Terrier, Bull Terrier, Staffordshire Bull Terrier, Rottweiler, Dobermann (letters a–f) and their crossbreeds must additionally be at least 18 years old and prove their capacity for safe ownership through a criminal record extract, a debt enforcement register extract and a certificate of legal capacity (Art. 21 para. 2 VetV GL).

The Glarus Veterinary Ordinance (Art. 19 VetV) lists 12 breeds whose keeping requires a permit. As of 1 January 2024, two breeds (g: was Fila Brasileiro; j: was Mastiff) were removed from the list. The list now includes: American Staffordshire Terrier (a), American Pit Bull Terrier (b), Bull Terrier (c), Staffordshire Bull Terrier (d), Rottweiler (e), Dobermann (f), Dogo Argentino (h), Cane Corso (i), German Shepherd (k), Belgian Shepherd (l) — and all crossbreeds of these breeds (m).