“We Europeans”. Animals, a precious company – France 3 – May 22, 2022

Major reportage, guests and European news are featured in the magazine “We Europeans” (Twitter), presented by Eleanor Gay and broadcast on Sundays at 10:25 a.m. on France 3as well as late Thursday evening on France 2. For this new issue of season 3, head to the Netherlands where 27 million pets live… for 17 million inhabitants. A country that has seen in ten years the number of dogs, cats, fish and new pets increase by 12%. Animals now occupy an increasingly important place in society: 88 million European households own one…

Some States have integrated animal protection into their Constitution, such as Germany or Switzerland. And in France, a law of 2021 now aims “to fight against animal abuse and to increase the links between humans and animals”. This new issue focuses on the protection and status of pets, which have changed a lot in recent years, as well as their benefits for humans. How can these developments be explained? Are they linked to progress in scientific and physiological knowledge of animals? What do they say about societies, about the relationship to the living?

Netherlands: animals under high protection

> THE GREAT REPORT
It is sometimes said that there is no abandonment of pets in the Netherlands, which has in recent years strengthened its legislation and heavily condemns this crime. This European country has also put in place measures to regulate adoptions. Police and social services units are dedicated to animal abuse cases, and six MPs from the Party for the Animals sit in parliament.
A report by Alexandre Paré and Paul Montels.

> THE GUESTS