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Are pets a pain in Spain?

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Shocking statistics reveal Spain to abandon more pets than any other European country


Spain is home to some 29 million domestic animals across the country, with half of Spanish households owning pets. Yet shocking statistics from the Affinity Foundation reveal that in 2023, close to 300,000 dogs and cats were picked up by rescue organisations, a figure that is synonymous with the previous year. Add to this, the hundreds of pets given up to rescue centres and pounds, and figures reach over 340,000 [Dingonatura Foundation], ranking Spain as the country with the highest rates of animal abandonment in Europe.  


Why are so many animals abandoned in Spain each year?

Is this still a backlash from the State of Alarm during COVID, 2020, when a craze for adopting dogs quickly developed, with many using pet ownership as a way to escape the house even for just a short time, during what was one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe?


It´s clear that the subsequent return to `normality´ after COVID 19, significantly impacted the lives of pets when new owners returned to work and social lives resumed, making caring for a dog more of a hinderance than a help. However, as the months since the pandemic pass, why are there still so many stray dogs and cats?


What other possible reasons are there for such large-scale abandonment?

One of the biggest issues must be attributed to irresponsible breeding and a lack of neutering, in particularly of dogs. Home breeders often think more of money than welfare, resulting in irresponsible new owners being lured by the endearing looks of a puppy but soon becoming overwhelmed by the behaviours of an adolescent dog and the constant care that is necessary. Travel, financial constraints, break-ups and the birth of a new baby are also often factors in the abandonment of a dog, as can be the growing costs of veterinary care as a dog ages.


With the overwhelming population of stray cats in Spain, rescue centres and individuals fight a losing battle trying to catch and neuter the fertile felines faster than they reproduce. Cats can begin reproducing at just 4 months of age, and can have multiple litters each year, meaning that within just 12 months, a mating couple can birth some 16 kittens, which, when all the offspring remain un-neutered, can mean that in a period of just 5 years, over 12,000 cats can be born throughout the generations [Four Paws Animal Welfare Worldwide].


What can be done to reduce rates of abandonment of cats and dogs in Spain?

With rescue centres and pounds stretched to breaking point, the new Animal Welfare Law in Spain, which was approved in March 2023 and enforced at the end of September 2023, aims to drastically reduce the population of abandoned animals across the country. It is no longer permitted by law for unauthorised breeders to produce and sell litters of dogs or cats, and now, as was previously the law for dogs, all cats must be microchipped. Cats are also now required by law to be neutered, from the age of 6 months.


For anybody considering taking on a new pet, as the slogan goes, `Adopt, don´t shop!´, and always do so responsibly.


*Working dogs such as hunting dogs are still exempt from the new animal welfare law


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