Pets in Afghanistan

Afghanistan’s pet system is fragmented. The Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) and the General Directorate of Animal Health (ریاست صحت حیوانی) deal with animal health, zoonoses, quarantine, veterinary medicines, vaccines, and professional oversight of veterinarians. The Animal Health (Veterinary) Act administered within MAIL’s area of responsibility provides a framework for veterinary authorities, imports and exports, quarantine, and animal welfare; the extent to which individual implementing rules currently apply has not been consistently verified in public sources. The Ministry of Justice provides the legal framework and a legal database. No verified nationwide pet registration, municipal pet license, uniform animal-welfare enforcement system, or public nationwide fee schedule was found. A historical MAIL entry from 1399 lists 1,282 licenses for private clinics and 210 reporting agreements in 34 provinces, but does not establish a current nationwide clinic directory. In Kabul, clinics and nongovernmental organizations work more closely together than in many other parts of the country. KSAR operates a licensed veterinary clinic with regular opening hours from Saturday to Thursday between 8 and 17 and an around-the-clock emergency service. Tahya Maskan also provides private veterinary examinations and surgeries in Kabul. Outside Kabul, treatment, medicines, food, shelter, and transport depend more heavily on local providers and accessibility. Animals are often acquired through local placement, rescue, a clinic referral, or informal contacts. KSAR places animals within Afghanistan and abroad. There is no uniform nationwide breeder or consumer-protection standard. For dogs and cats, the origin should be traceable, and a veterinary examination with vaccination and treatment records should be obtained. The ownership or trade of wildlife and exotic animals is not part of the ordinary pet sector; Afghanistan’s environmental protection authority, NEPA, is relevant for CITES permits. Rabies is a priority zoonosis. According to the WHO, more than 99 percent of human rabies cases are transmitted by domestic dogs; rural communities are particularly affected, and access to necessary treatment after a bite may be limited. A 2025 MAIL procurement notice concerned 10,000 rabies vaccine doses with a stated contract value of 1,195,000 AFN. This does not guarantee that vaccines are available everywhere. Owners should have the animal assessed by a veterinarian, document rabies vaccination and other vaccinations according to local availability, prevent bites, and control parasites and infectious diseases. No formally uniform nationwide vaccination schedule for pets was found. For exports, the legal framework assigns the veterinary authority responsibilities for imports, exports, quarantine, and health certificates. MAIL documents mention veterinary health certificates at official border crossings or airports and export certificates for dogs. A current, complete Afghan checklist for pet travel is not reliably available publicly. The destination country sets its entry requirements; airline rules and requirements of Afghan quarantine stations also apply. Before booking, owners should ask a licensed veterinary practice, MAIL or the quarantine station, and the airline about health certificates, proof of rabies vaccination, identification, tests, permits, and quarantine. The Ministry of Justice names an explicit ban on animal fighting in a moral law published in 2024. Publicly reported sanctions range from warnings and threats to loss of property and detention for one to three days, or referral to a court. The Associated Press reported in 2026 on Decree No. 12 with 119 articles and a possible five-month prison sentence; the official decree text was not accessible. The exact current legal situation should therefore be checked locally before making a legal decision. No blanket ban on keeping pets was confirmed in the official sources reviewed. There is no verified nationwide relinquishment or municipal animal-shelter system. KSAR provides medical care, shelter, rehoming, and adoption; other rescue and shelter services operate inconsistently and depend on capacity. An animal should only be relinquished after intake has been confirmed, veterinary records have been handed over, and transport has been arranged. The costs of examinations, medicines, food, shelter, transport, certificates, and permits depend on the provider and the specific route.