In Spain, pets as “sentient beings” should be better protected against neglect, neglect and torture by their owners. Madrid’s lower house on Thursday finally approved the Animal Rights and Welfare Act and amendments to the Penal Code with higher penalties for animal cruelty.
The improvements are intended to benefit Spain’s estimated 26 million pets, mainly dogs and cats.
Dogs should not be left alone for more than a day
In the future, dogs should not be left alone for more than one day and cats should not be left alone for more than three days. In addition, they should be housed in a species-specific manner and protected from cold and heat and, if necessary, undergo veterinary treatment. All masters and mistresses are required to take out liability insurance for their darlings.
Abuse can lead to fines of up to 200,000 euros
Abuse and other animal welfare violations can be punished with fines of up to 200,000 euros or even imprisonment. Anyone who has mistreated their animal will have it irrevocably confiscated and handed over to an animal shelter.
Only veterinarians are allowed to kill pets
Pets may only be killed if they endanger public health or in the context of euthanasia, and then only by a veterinarian. Hunting dogs, which were sometimes treated particularly cruelly and were originally intended to enjoy the same protection, were exempted after protests from hunting associations. Exceptions also apply to police and guide dogs and herd and sheep dogs.
Bullfights are allowed to continue
The ban on the use of animals in combat events such as cockfights also has an exception: it does not apply to bullfights. Different rules apply to farm animals.
Heated discussions at the political level
The legislative initiative of the left-wing coalition government had sparked heated debate. In last week’s vote, the House of Lords canceled the planned requirement for dog owners to take a course on how to handle their pet in a species-specific way. However, every dog owner must take a simple dog ownership test, which can be done online. And the dogs themselves are monitored to see if they could pose a threat to their environment and the public.
The planned rule that homeless people are not allowed to keep dogs has been dropped. Although they are sometimes misused for begging, they are now said to be too important a companion for the particularly vulnerable homeless.
Source: Krone
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