Two years have passed since the animal welfare law entered into force and there are still doubts among dog owners. Should we hire civil liability insurance with any dog? Wouldn’t you be worth the home insurance? Should we take care of responsible possession? Can a new dog possession rate appear as already happens in some places in Europe? Some of them, especially those that have to do with hypothetics new expenses for the owners, are still today the object of debate and motive for bulls and speculations. Among them the commented possible rate for dog possession.
The truth is that there are details that are still unknown, because the regulation that must be published by Royal Decree is missing. The regulations are missing and with it the basis for the application and effective protection of animal welfare, Reason that, in theory, is behind Law 7/2023, of March 28. «If we do not consolidate the regulations and begin to know where to go, it is difficult to apply the protection. There are details that continue to worry, because there have been many bulos, for example, that you could not have parakeets or rabbits. Many people do not know very well whether to take or adopt an animal, because it does not know if you are going to have problems. On the other hand, the law already says that You have to have mandatory civil liability insurance Regardless of the dog’s breed, but the regulatory development is missing to determine the minimum amount, the coverage and the conditions … know, for example, if with the house insurance it will be sufficient. On the course we know that it will be mandatory for new owners, but again it is necessary to know the conditions, ”says Amparo Requena Marqués, vice president of the Animal Law Section of the Bar Association of Valencia, who also argues that in article 1905 of the Civil Code“ it clearly says of who is the responsibility for an accident or damage that an animal produces. I don’t think it’s so absolutely necessary to have mandatory insurance. If it is already in the Civil Code and in case of animals for animals, we know that the owner or the holder will respond. If there are already black and white, they are clear, in the end the possibility can occur that the new rules are seen only as more obstacles ».
Objective: Identify
In Spain there are about 30 million pets, Although there is a fraction on which there is no control. «70% of dogs have identification chip (because the law has demanded it for decades), but in the case of cats there are only 30% of them with chip. An unidentified animal does not exist, nor for security forces and bodies, and therefore is not protected, ”says María Luisa Fernández, president of the Veterinarians College of Tenerife, which also explains another part of the regulation still pending. «The identification system of pets at the national level is missing. This record will allow to have a better control and traceability of animals, something key to preventing abandonment and fighting illegal traffic, ”he says.
In Spain every year About 200,000 animals are abandoned. «30 years ago it is mandatory to put a chip to dogs. So how is it possible that animal protection entities continue to collect lost, abandoned animals and that 90% of them do not carry the chip? This means that there is no base control, ”says Amparo Requena. Could you help a tension rate to avoid abandonment?
Tenure rate
Much has been speculated with the possibility of creating a national rate for having a dog, but the truth is that the law does not establish or speak of that possibility. Of course, there are Spanish cities that have or have had it and others in Europe where they are common. An example is Zamora, who had this rate until 2012 and recovered it between 2019 and 2024. It was a disbursement of nine euros for can. When it was eliminated at the beginning of 2024, the local press indicated: «The Consistory now considers that this tax must fall after fulfilling its function and purifying the census that today maintains a total of 5,000 dogs compared to 9,000 four years ago, that is, a decrease of 44.4%. The City Council decided to recover four years ago this tax that had already been applied in the city until 1992 according to the increase in the number of dogs that translated into a greater cost of the services offered ».
So, as seen, in the places where it has been or is, the rate is imposed To cover services with road cleaning expenses. Although it could be considered in the future, something of the General Directorate of Animal Rights has already denied that many organizations such as the Royal Canine Society oppose, “it could be counterproductive if what is intended as in Spain is to identify. In my view it would be a very unpopular measure and could discourage compliance with the obligation to identify animals. Therefore, it seems unlikely to be implanted in the short or medium term, especially when our country’s public policies are focused on encouraging responsible tenure. It would collide with the state strategy, which seeks to foster identification as a key measure against abandonment. In fact, in some CC AA it has been discussed in the opposite direction. This is: allowing holders to deduce certain veterinary expenses in the income statement, ”says Claudia Compte Cotropia, director of Legal and Co-Sponsor of the ESG Committee of the Iskaypet group. Amparo Requena adds to this opinion: «You cannot create a rate without a justification and there is no. We already have sanctions for a lot of things and that money is already a way to obtain resources for the municipalities. You cannot also record tenure when the owners are already forced to put the chip to their dog, to vaccinate them, deworm them … now to have insurance ».
In fact, Berlin, One of the cities referred to always when you talk about these rates, something similar to what the experts consulted has happened. Dog owners pay about 120 euros a year for sanitation costs, Thanks to a measure that has been applying for decades. However, as “The Guardian” reports in a recent report in 2022 it was decided that each owner also registered their dog through Microchip, which caused a violent reaction for additional spending and discomfort. «Official figures cited by local media show that the fiscal offices of the Berlin district had 131,258 dogs registered at the end of the year before the commissioning of the regulations and more than three years later, only 66,221 dogs appear in the official Hunderegister (Dog Registry). This is approximately half of the number subject to a tax ». That is, the environment says, “the reluctance at additional costs in a certain way has invalidated a record that was designed to help identify fugitive dogs, ensure animal welfare and track subjects of aggressive behaviors.”
A regulation that is expected for the end of the year
In June of this year, the draft Development Regulations of Law 7/2023 were submitted for a hearing and public information. According to Efe citing sources from the General Directorate of Animal Rights Some 600 allegations have been presented and it is expected that before the end of the year it will be approved.
«We know that The responsible tenure course will only be enforceable for new dog holders, Not for the current ones. Its content will be very simple, so you should not generate concern. And about the insurance, dog headlines will have a year since the publication to hire it. This is what the General Directorate of Animal Rights of the Ministry of Social Rights, Consumption and Agenda 2030 has been doing in these years along with all the actors in the sector. It is time but this law creates a common framework in this area for all CC AA, says Claudia Compte Cotropia, director of legal and co-sponsor of the ESG Committee of the Iskaypet group.