After the Joint Constitutional Commission (Gemeinsame Verfassungskommission) had spoken out against animal protection as a constitutional goal, corresponding initiatives were repeatedly brought before the Federal Parliament or the Federal Council in the years thereafter:

For example, by the FDP faction in the Federal Parliament on 14 December 1998 ("Within the scope of applicable laws animals are protected against avoidable suffering and harm" as Art. 20a Para. 2 Basic Law), by the PDS faction in the Federal Parliament on 19 January 1999 ("Animals are protected as part of their species-appropriate keeping against the destruction of their habitats as well as against avoidable pain and suffering. Animal experiments are only permissible if they are indispensable for the advancement of human health" as Art. 20a Para. 2 Basic Law) and by the SPD and Bündnis90/Die Grünen (The Greens) on 26 February 2002 (insertion of the words "and animals" into Art. 20a Basic Law).

On 23 April 2002 the parliamentary factions of the SPD, CDU/CSU, Bündnis90/Die Grünen and FDP introduced the Draft Act for the Amendment of the Basic Law (Animal Protection as a Constitutional Goal) (Entwurf eines Gesetzes zur Änderung des Grundgesetzes (Staatsziel Tierschutz)); this resulted in a constitutional amendment on 26 July 2002. As justification for the submission it was asserted that the aim was to "strengthen the animal protection normalised in simple law and ensure the effectiveness of legal provisions governing animal welfare" (Parliament Printed Materials [BT-Drucks.] 14/8860).