The law modifying the legal status of animals has just entered into force in Spain. From now on, an animal is a being who feels and is endowed with sensitivity, and no longer an object or a thing.
The animal, and especially the companion animal, is no longer a thing, or an object, but a living being in its own right and, as such, benefiting from rights. The law voted in early December by a large majority of deputies implies the modification of three standards: the civil code, the law on mortgages and that of civil proceedings. With the normative changes, a dog for example will play an important role in the event of a separation of a couple.
A judge will have to decide on shared custody. If it is proven that one of the two spouses has been guilty of mistreatment of the animal, the spouse in question will be separated from it forever, much like a husband who is violent towards his spouse. In the event of separation, the judge will decide who will cover the costs corresponding to the care of the animal. All this, because the legislator is now concerned about animal welfare, is the expression used. Social Rights Minister Ione Belarra says her government has “decosified” a person who has become increasingly important in the lives of Spaniards.
From hoy los animales dejan por ley de ser cosas y pasan a ser lo que son, seres que sienten. Damos un gran paso para mejorar el bienestar animal. In 2022 seguimos trabajando para que la # LeyProtecciónAnimal que lucha contra el abandono y maltrato también sea una realidad.
– Ione Belarra (@ionebelarra) January 5, 2022
Go further in the protection of animals
The executive is not going to stop there and is preparing a draft bill that intends to ban the use of animals in circuses, prohibit the sale of pets in stores and outlaw the sacrifice of animals. , except in cases of force majeure. He also wants to punish the abandonment of pets in a country where between 150 and 300,000 of these animals would be delivered to their fate each year.