Hong Kong pet retailers hope for a boost after the end of hamster import ban

According to local media, the city’s Agriculture, Fisheries, and Conservation Department (AFCD) recommended scrapping the ban on commercial imports of hamsters from mid-January 2023.

The BBC said that authorities will release sales of these small mammals only once they’ve tested negative for coronavirus.

Hong Kong is lifting the ban a year after more than 2,000 hamsters, and other small mammals were culled to avoid spreading COVID-19. Variants of the virus were traced to a pet shop in the city.

End of an agony

The ban has impacted pet retailers in the city, and a pet shop owner told the BBC that “business has been bad” since the beginning of 2022. 

The Hong Kong Pet Traders Association (HKPTA) welcomed the end of the ban but warned that it had taken its toll on the small pet industry.

“The average life span of hamsters is 1 to 2 years. The ban caused a dip in the pet trade and a huge reduction in sales of related products such as food and supplies. The economic loss is unimaginable. Retailers are struggling to survive under such circumstances,” Kit Lam, HKPTA Chairman of Retail Concerns, told GlobalPETS.

Lam added that pet shops are “optimistic” about the recovery but said that the future “remains unpredictable” until the government reveals additional details on the resumption of hamster imports.