Are Poisonous Snakes More Important Than Dogs?

According to a judgment by the Court of Appeals of Western Sweden (Hovrätten för Västra Sverige) on the 11 March 2014 (case number B 4635-13), a veterinarian has been sentenced to fines. His crime was that he had captured three adders, with the purpose of making new antidote to use on dogs bitten by adders.

The veterinarian held the adders in captivity for a month before letting them go again, also releasing the small adders that had been born in captivity. His purpose, thus, was that of a scientist and a veterinarian, wanting to save dogs. Capturing adders, however, are not allowed under Swedish law. It is a crime against the laws protecting certain species of animals.

In my mind, the lives, health and safety of dogs must be considered much more important than a temporary limit of the freedom of a couple of adders. The adders where not held in captivity for a long time and were returned to their natural habitat. No harm was done to them.

Dogs are part of human civilisation and veterinaran care of them is a vital interest of society. From a strictly legal point of view, I guess the sentence against the veterinarian was correct. However, I believe the law must be changed. Veterinarians must be able to work for the benefit of domestic animals in the way that this veterinarian tried to do.