Hong Kong’s new program allowing pet dogs into licensed eateries ran smoothly during its month-long adaptation period, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department said on Sunday.

A spokesman for the FEHD said members of the public and restaurants have gradually adapted to the new arrangement, with the number of restaurants permitted to take in dogs increasing from 940 to over 980 as of Sunday, when the adaptation period ended.  

The FEHD's dedicated team also continued to inspect restaurants across various districts to provide support to each permitted restaurants, and enhance the compliance awareness among restaurant owners and customers.

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As of Saturday, FEHD officers have conducted about 29,600 inspections of permitted restaurants, issued a total of 77 verbal warnings, and taken enforcement actions against serious non-compliance behaviors, including issuing warning letters to licensees of three permitted restaurants for persistent non-compliance of cooking or heating food on dining tables, and instituting two prosecutions against failure to securely hold dogs on leashes, the spokesman said.

The officers also inspected non-permitted restaurants, and instituted prosecutions against six of them in breach of the regulation for allowing dogs to enter, he added.

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As the adaptation period ended Sunday, the department said it will conduct flexible inspections based on risk assessments.

If non-compliance is detected, enforcement action will be taken immediately without prior warning, it added.

The FEHD emphasized that both restaurants and customers must abide by the law while jointly promoting pet inclusivity.