The extensive use of anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and antibiotics in livestock farming poses a serious life hazard to the population of vultures. To have a better understanding of the existing laws that ensure regulation of such activity and identify potential alternatives to the dangerous drugs,
PPNEA conducted desk-based research of the existing legislation on Veterinary Medical Products (VMPs) in Albania. Also, the research aim was to obtain information and understand the legal implementation of legislation over the regulation of use, trade, and control during the transport of VMPs in the country.
The conclusions highlighted in the report indicate that Albania has pretty solid legislation on VMPs use, production, trade, and import as well as on livestock welfare and breeding. In the Republic of Albania, one general law and one regulation, regulate all the activities related to animal treating, livestock farming, veterinary control, veterinary professionals work, production, use and trade of VMPs, and productions and trade of animal products. The legislation was also designed to ensure animal and human food safety and health. Despite the solid legislation and regulation, during the research were identified some obstacles in successfully implementation described below:
- High Registering Prices
- Lack of Veterinarians in Border Control Points
- Immediate need for a publication of a list of VMP active in the country, meaning that every registered VMP details could be easily accessed by any veterinarian in the country
- Provide the state veterinary laboratory with the necessary kits to detect and analyze poisoned birds to evaluate the risks of a certain NSAIDs used on a specified region or during a specific time.
To make the implied laws more durable and more applicable it is needed to fulfill all these obstacles and gaps identified during the desk-based research. This will result in better implementation of the law and consequently have a positive effect on the conservation of Vultures.
The report was developed under the frames of the LIFE project “Egyptian vulture New LIFE” funded by the European Commission and co-funded by the “A.G. Leventis Foundation” and implemented by different partners of Birdlife International.
