Rescue dog from North Carolina animal fights

Michelle Riley / The HSUS

Italy

Humane World for Animals Italy

We're working to make a more humane Italy.

Our Impact

Italy follows the EU’s requirements for animal welfare. The country also has its own protections in place, including legislation prohibiting the mistreatment of animals. And an annual National Plan on Animal Welfare guides Italy’s compliance with EU regulations on farm animals.

Top animal welfare issues include intensive cage and crate confinement and extreme crowding on farms, the import of animal trophies, dogfighting and the use of animals for testing in laboratories.

What we are working on

Humane World for Animals is working hard to help. We’re persuading corporations to adopt policies that give farmed animals room to move while also advocating for a more plant-forward food system. We’re ending the cruel practice of trophy hunting. We’re raising awareness about dogfighting while working to eradicate it. And we’re finding alternative ways to test products without harming animals.

Working to end trophy hunting

Humane World for Animals

#NotInMyWorld

Stopping trophy hunting

Between 2013 and 2022, Italy imported 492 hunting trophies from protected species—including elephants and polar bears. Italy is also one of just five countries to have imported a trophy from the critically endangered black rhinoceros. We're pressure the Italian government—and the Parliamentary majority supporting it—to ban the import of hunting trophies.

Learn More
young piglets Patsy & Saffron play in Summer sunshine in their enclosure at Pigs In The Wood sanctuary for pigs

Tom Woollard/We Animals Media

We're working to prevent suffering by farmed animals.

Improving the lives of farmed animals

We are focused on creating better living conditions for farmed animals. As of 2020, some 300 million animals were confined to cages in the EU, 45 million of those in Italy. Humane World for Animals is committed to reducing those numbers and giving pigs, chickens, and other farmed animals more room to move.

Learn More
Fox on a fur farm

Oikeutta eläimille

Animals need their fur—we don't.

Going Fur-free

To promote fur-free policies, we continue collaborating with the fashion industry. We encourage brands to adopt cruelty-free practices and shift away from using fur. 

Learn More
Rescued from dogfighting in Italy

Chiara Muzzini/Fondazione Cave Canem

Rescued from dogfighting.

Stopping dogfighting

We’re continuing efforts to combat dogfighting by providing law enforcement with the skills to identify and address this cruel practice. We also contribute to expert research on dogfighting, deepening understanding of its prevalence and impact. And we actively engage public opinion, raising awareness about the issue and encouraging communities to recognize and report signs of dogfighting.

Learn More

Highlights of our work

taxidermy zebra, deer, bear and other animals at auction

Nel 2023, ITA Airways, la principale compagnia aerea italiana, ha aderito alla campagna #NotInMyWorld che mira a porre fine alla caccia al trofeo vietando il trasporto di tali trofei.

Beautiful orange fox standing in the snow.

Nel 2021, l'Italia ha vietato questa pratica, una decisione che ha contribuito alla chiusura dei dieci allevamenti di visoni della nazione. Questo cambiamento è stato possibile grazie agli sforzi dei nostri esperti e attivisti. Insieme ai nostri partner, abbiamo convinto molti marchi di moda italiani - come Gucci, Prada e Max Mara - a dire addio alle pellicce. 

Chicken perched in a cage free facility.

Conferiamo riconoscimenti alle aziende italiane che stanno facendo la differenza nell'ambito dell'allevamento di animali. Nel 2020, abbiamo premiato Barilla - il più grande produttore di pasta al mondo - per la sua posizione di rilievo nell'adozione e nell'attuazione di una politica che vieta l'utilizzo di uova provenienti da galline confinate in gabbia.

Dog in dark boarded cage looks out at HSUS animal rescue team

Per mettere fine ai combattimenti tra cani, abbiamo lanciato la campagna "Io non combatto", che ha permesso di salvare cani coinvolti nei combattimenti. Abbiamo anche redatto una guida che aiuta le persone a riconoscere i segnali di questa attività illegale e abbiamo realizzato un opuscolo educativo per le scuole. Abbiamo infine fornito formazione specifica alle Forze di polizia impegnate nel contrasto delle scommesse e del gioco d'azzardo.

Latest News

Four mink kittens with the skull of a fifth kitten

Jo-Anne MacArthur/We Animals

Four mink kittens with the skull of a fifth kitten. Due to stress and cramped space, fur-farmed mink routinely kill and cannibalize one another. Some of these mink are missing ears, which they chew and tear off of each other during fights. These photographs make up part of an anti-fur campaign, organized by the Animal Rights Alliance of Sweden. Sweden, 2010.
More Latest News

Your gift can do so much for animals in need

Start saving lives today by making a one-time gift—or protect animals worldwide all year long with a monthly contribution.

Photo by Volodymyr Burdiak/Alamy Stock Photo/