Madrid (EFE) and a battery of obligations to their owners and tightening of sanctions.
According to the Minister of Social Rights, Ione Belarra, promoter of this law, from now on animal abuse will end, with a legislation that together with the reform of the Penal Code on animal abuse and their protection as “sentient beings” will culminate ” the first wave of animal rights in Spain”.
These are some of the keys to the new animal welfare law:
What animals are you targeting?
Domestic and wild in captivity. In Spain, one in three homes lives with at least one pet.
What is meant by animal rights?
Their right to good treatment, respect and protection, inherent and derived from their nature as sentient beings, together with the obligations that the legal system imposes on people, particularly those in contact or relationship with them to guarantee their animal welfare.
Will all pets be included in the law?
Hunting dogs, those of professional activities such as those of rescue or security forces, and also animals used in bullfighting or production shows, among others, are excluded.
What is the main objective?
Guarantee animal welfare and the protection of their dignity and ability to feel, with the development of legal mechanisms for the high numbers of abandonment, establishing a common legal framework throughout the Spanish territory.
When will the new law take effect?
Six months after its publication in the Official State Gazette (BOE).
What will be required for the possession of dogs?
Accredit a training course for the ownership of dogs that will be valid indefinitely, will be free and its content will be determined by regulation. The holders together with their dogs must take a “test” or test to assess their ability to function in the social sphere.
What other requirements will be necessary?
Throughout the life of the animal, the owner must take out and maintain in force a civil liability insurance for damages to third parties, which includes the persons responsible for the animal in its coverage.
What will be the obligations for the owners?
Among others, keeping your pets integrated into the family nucleus, avoiding uncontrolled reproduction, breeding can only be carried out by those responsible for it registered as such in the corresponding registry. The owner must pass the training in responsible ownership regulated for each species of pet.
The animal will be identified with a microchip and all cats will be surgically sterilized before they are six months old, except those registered in the identification register as breeders and in the name of a breeder registered in the Register of Company Breeders.
The prohibitions?
Using the animals subject to this law in fights or training them in this practice; regularly keeping dogs and cats on terraces, balconies, rooftops, storage rooms, basements, patios or vehicles; leave any pet unsupervised for more than three consecutive days and in the case of dogs, no more than twenty-four hours.
The commercial breeding of any species of companion animal, and/or any type of breeding of animals whose individual identification is mandatory by current regulations, by breeders not registered in the Registry of Companion Animal Breeders, will be prohibited.
Neither can dogs, cats and ferrets be sold in pet shops, or exposed to the public for commercial purposes, which will be classified as very serious. These animals may only be marketed by registered breeders.
What will the penalties be?
The range of amounts to be paid depending on the infraction will range from 500 to 200,000 euros. The slight will be sanctioned with a warning or a fine of 500 to 10,000 euros; serious ones, from 10,001 to 50,000 euros and very serious ones, from 50,001 to 200,000 euros.
Among other behaviors, the breach of the obligations of identification of the animal will be considered serious; the use of aggressive or violent methods in their education; the administration of substances that harm it unless they are prescribed by veterinarians and for therapeutic purposes, as well as carrying out unauthorized mutilations or body modifications on the animal.