(12)Regulation (EC) No 998/2003 provides that, for a transitional period, pet animals of the species listed in Parts A and B of Annex I thereto are to be regarded as identified when they bear either a clear readable tattoo or an electronic identification system (‘transponder’). This Regulation should therefore lay down rules for the marking of pet animals of the species listed in Part A of Annex I to this Regulation after expiry of the transitional period on 3 July 2011.