Hong Kong dog owners and their four-legged friends have gained new freedoms after the city relaxed a decades-old rule, allowing the pets to join them at eateries.

Since 1994, only guide dogs and those performing statutory duties were allowed in restaurants under the city’s food business regulation. But the policy change aimed at promoting a pet-friendly culture kicked in Thursday, covering over 900 approved restaurants in the measure’s first phase.

It is the city’s latest step toward building an animal-friendly society. Hong Kong now allows pets on certain ferry routes and some metro trains serving rural areas, and public hospitals have started permitting pet visits for palliative care patients.

According to the government, more than 240,000 households in the city keep over 400,000 pet cats and dogs, accounting for about 9% of the city’s households.

Under the new measure, dogs must be kept on a leash not exceeding 1.5 meters (5 feet) that must be held by an adult or tied to a fixture. The dogs should also be kept off tables, and may not consume food directly from reusable human utensils.

Dogs considered to be among the “fighting breed” by government standards are not allowed in the establishments at all.

Restaurants cannot cook food for the dogs but can offer prepackaged food to the pets.

Many eateries have also geared up to welcome their furry customers, with some of them hoping it would help boost their revenues.


-AP