Pre-adoption education boosts pet registration rate to 81%

Pet owners who completed pre-adoption education registered their animals at a rate more than 20 percentage points higher than those who did not, a new report has found. Nearly seven in 10 respondents also said they support making such education mandatory to foster a more responsible pet-ownership culture.

According to a report on the state of the pet registration system and ways to improve it, released Tuesday by the Korea Rural Economic Institute, the registration rate among owners who completed pre-adoption education reached 80.8 percent. Among those who had not received the training, the rate stood at 59.8 percent — a gap of 21.0 percentage points.

Pet registration rates by whether owners completed pre-adoption education [Korea Rural Economic Institute]

The education also improved awareness of the pet registration system. Among respondents who had completed pre-adoption training, 54.9 percent said it helped them understand the registration system and recognize the need to register their animals.

The survey also confirmed broad support for making pre-adoption education compulsory. Some 66.1 percent of respondents said they favor the requirement. The researchers recommended expanding such education to curb impulsive pet adoptions and establish a more responsible pet-ownership culture.

The government has also announced plans to expand pre-adoption education. Under the Third Comprehensive Animal Welfare Plan (2025–2029), authorities will this year begin phasing in mandatory pre-adoption education for people adopting animals from local government animal protection centers. The researchers urged systematic management of the program and stronger links with the pet registration system to ensure the policy takes hold on the ground.

"Pre-adoption education can go beyond simply conveying information — it can serve as a foundation for raising owners' sense of responsibility and strengthening the effectiveness of the pet registration system," said Kim Dong-hun, an associate research fellow at the Korea Rural Economic Institute. "Education and the registration system need to be reinforced together to spread a responsible pet-ownership culture."

adastra@heraldcorp.com