On 1 April the new Animal Welfare Law came into force in Sweden. Thanks to efforts of Djurens Rätt and other Swedish animal protection organisations, from now on it will be illegal to abandon animals in Sweden without legal consequences. Also, circuses will no longer be allowed to use elephants and sea lions for entertainment purposes, but although the new law introduces the right for animals to express their natural behaviors, minks bred for fur and laying hens are still allowed to be kept in cages.